Goodbye Ordinary (Rewrite)
by Welcome to the New
Summary: Fourth and final in the Therapy Session series. The Grid is finally at peace. Or, so everyone thinks. When a new and dangerous enemy causes mass destruction to an unsuspecting city, it's up to Tron, Beck, and two Avengers to figure out who this imposing threat is, and put a stop to them before it's too late. Rated T for swearing, and mentions of self-harm later throughout.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

" _It's coming undone, this world that I made, I feel it descending now The place that I run, or what I run from, The boundary begins to fade Every word's a trap to your lies, Every life you try to save dies You hold the truth like a knife, You couldn't leave it behind You're my impostor, I'm a shadow lost deep inside..._ " - Imposter, Red

* * *

Dyson scowled as he realized that idiot Pavel failed miserably in a battle against the Users. He had tried invading the Real World by using whatever means necessary after the Son of Flynn recreated the Grid. What Pavel wasn't anticipating was the fact that he had been intercepted the moment he arrived in the Real World. Of course, the Users would have easily taken the idiot down before he could destroy them. Dyson had always known in the back of his mind that Pavel would likely fail. That was part of the reason he had been bracing himself for the next contingency plan.

That was what had led him to the deepest parts of the Outlands. Luckily, Clu always had backup plans when all else failed. The Son of Flynn wasn't expecting to find so many programs still against the Users. Which had given Dyson the perfect opportunity to seek out the one program that few knew about. This program lived deep in the Outlands, where few survived due to a lack of energy. Venturing this far out meant the risk of running across Gridbugs as well as other less obvious threats.

Determination was what had pulled Dyson through everything. He was determined to make sure that Clu's order for perfection continued. And he wanted revenge on the Users that had ruined everything. But the only way to get his revenge was by going against everything he had taught himself. Going to the Outlands had always been meant as a last resort. Programs only went to the Outlands if they wanted to disappear for good. Others disappeared if they wanted to escape the Occupation while Clu was in power. Now, Dyson had an entirely different reason for wanting to visit.

It took a few more microcycles for him to reach his destination. From here, he couldn't even make out the cities that surrounded the Grid. The weather out here was unpredictable, and rain battered his helmet as he pulled to a stop. One microcycle it could be raining, and the next, there could be a blizzard that whipped up without warning. That was what made the Outlands so dangerous. It was also what made the Outlands the perfect place to hide something very important to the Grid.

Dyson took a few steps forward before tapping the ground with his boot. What looked like a simple procedure was actually a complicated set of security codes that only a few knew about. Clu had left instructions for him before he was merged with the Creator. First, find the Keeper of Archives. Then proceed with the rest of the contingency plan. He'd already gone through the first phase of his plan, which was to recruit as many scientists and soldiers as possible. He knew it would take as much effort as possible to take Tron and the Users down.

Suddenly, the ground began to split in half, revealing a set of stairs leading down. Dyson resisted a knowing smirk as he immediately made his way down the stairs. The secret passage closed behind him once he was inside, and as he continued on his way, it got darker, cold and damp. For a few nanocycles, he had to feel his way around before faint lights began flickering on and off.

Once he had reached the bottom, the blue lights became a little brighter, revealing what seemed like endless rows of data and files. Dyson waited patiently for the sound of footsteps that followed. The Archive Keeper wasn't exactly a program he enjoyed meeting with. Something about her creeped everyone who met her out. She was far worse than any old program who could tamper with someone's identity disk and make it seem as if they were working against the enemy.

A program emerged from the shadows as Dyson leaned against the grimy wall. Their face was covered by a mask until they recognized the mark of a highly elite general. The moment their mask receded, Dyson was able to get a good look at the old program. She had stark white hair that seemed tangled and messy, and her eyes were a pale blue. The suit she wore was black with primary white and red circuits.

"Archive Keeper, it has been a long time, hasn't it?" Dyson asked as his mask receded.

The Archive Keeper only scowled in response.

"Dyson, you of all programs know that while Archive Keeper is my official title, I go by a name," she retorted. "Or has it been so long that you've forgotten already?"

Dyson rolled his eyes at her snappy remark. One thing he didn't like about her was the fact that she had no limitations to what she could or couldn't say to Clu or his generals. Without her, they would have no access to the Grid's core memories. Clu was the one who had given orders not to derezz her even if she crossed the line. So it took everything he had not to instinctively reach for his disk and put an end to her rash attitude.

"Alright, Zena," he growled, already irritated with the fact that he was here in the first place. "You know why I am here."

"Yes." Zena crossed her arms and looked at nothing in particular – the subtle signs of the fact that she was blind. "I assume that Clu has failed miserably in dominating the Real World, and thus his contingency plans are failing as well." She smirked a little before saying something that really made Dyson's skin crawl with outrage, "You only visit when you are desperate. So tell me, what does the great Dyson need _this_ time?"

"You know what I need," he snapped, losing his patience. "That little User that Clu was so interested in… I want to know exactly what he did to her."

Zena's smirk turned to a frown as she pulled out the files and data in question.

"What Clu did to her was unforgivable," she sighed. "But, it is not my place to interfere. Be careful where you tread your feet, Dyson. If you make any risky moves, they will more than likely end in failure."

"I am already aware of the risks," he retorted before looking through the files she had given him.

What Dyson saw next should have made him realize that Clu was far more cynical than he realized. Clu had run experiments on the User when she was out cold after a fight against Rinzler. Her wounds were only just recovering when he began running the experiments. His ultimate plan was to see whether or not Users could be repurposed and turned into the greatest weapons the Grid had ever seen. What he wasn't expecting was for the ISO to interfere with his plan.

Dyson couldn't help but grin triumphantly as he realized what this meant. The little User that Clu had focused on for so many xilacycles was far stronger than even Tron realized. And she would make a perfect experiment for his latest contingency plans. Zena had taken a step back as she guessed what Dyson's latest plan was. He knew she couldn't fight him off even if she wanted to. As someone who was coded to protect the archive and everything within, she couldn't interfere with the outside world. That included those who came by to pay her a visit.

"Tell me, Zena, what do you know of Users?" he asked after closing the last bits of data.

Zena tilted her head to one side warily.

The only User she had met in her lifetime was the Creator. He told her that the Archive Data was precious to the Grid, and that she would be the greatest and the only guardian it had ever seen.

"I've never really met any other User," she admitted honestly. "But I've heard that they can do great things, such as modify code and create things at will." Then she felt a cold rush of horror as she realized what Dyson was going to try and accomplish. "Dyson, you can't possibly think that repurposing a User will get you anywhere? I know that you've had your fair share of hurt in the past because of Flynn, but this… this is wrong!"

He suddenly grabbed her by the throat, then he held her against the wall, eyes narrowing with hate.

"I don't care whether this is right or wrong!" he snapped. "That _little_ User ruined everything for me! And now she, along with everyone she cares about will pay."

The Archive Keeper didn't bother fighting back as he released his grip on her. She let out a choking cough before glaring in his direction. Even though she couldn't see him, she could sense where he was standing.

"Dyson, for the last time, please don't do this," she whispered.

She may not have seen what Clu did to that User, but she was aware of what she had heard. And nothing good could come out of it. Attacking a User would only bring trouble to the Grid. Trouble the Grid did not need to see, after Clu's fallout.

"I've already made up my mind. The scientists I recruited have created a special repurposing chamber… one that will work on anyone defiant against Clu's word. And I know the perfect specimen to test it on."

Zena felt a shiver run through her as she heard him leave. There was nothing she could do to stop this. She had never felt more helpless than now.

…

Now, it was a waiting game. Sooner or later, the User would come running back to the Grid. Her ties with Tron and the Renegade made this revenge all the sweeter. He couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces when they realized one of their own had turned against them. Especially when they realized that someone happened to be the very one they had protected for all these cycles.

Finally, after what felt like cycles had passed, the Portal had opened in the outskirt of Argon City. Somehow it was always Argon that had the most attention. Being this close to Tron's new headquarters should have put everyone on edge. But Dyson was determined to get his hands on the User, especially when she seemed so pleased with herself. He wanted more than anything to wipe that smug look off of her face once he knew it was the right opportunity to strike.

Lightning streaked ominously across the sky as Dyson signaled to his repurposed soldiers to strike. The User was no stranger to running across trouble on the Grid, and she was already tense, as if she had known they were waiting. Dyson signaled to one of his soldiers to throw a taser grenade before she could fight back. She would struggle, and given the fact that she had been trained by Tron, that made her all the more difficult an opponent.

Her attacks were quick and could be lethal if she wasn't holding back. Even after one taser grenade was fired, she still fought back. Dyson hated to admit that even he was impressed with the fact that she could hold her own in a fight. That made what he was about to do all the sweeter as he fired the second taser grenade. It would take more than a few soldiers to take down the User he'd been hoping to get his hands on for the final part of his plan.

Despite all of her efforts to fight back, the second taser was enough to knock her out cold. Dyson couldn't help but chuckle in amusement as the soldiers stepped back, deactivating their disks once she was taken down. His helmet receded as he approached the User, whose eyes widened in disbelief upon seeing his familiar face.

"You'll make a fine experiment," he sneered as she blacked out. "Take her to the base. I want to work on this experiment right away," he ordered the soldiers. The soldiers were all too willing to comply. Once they had taken her away, Dyson looked over his shoulder and glared at the city looming ahead of him. "Don't give me that look, old friend. You had this coming. I'm going to make you suffer, for everything you've taken from me."

…

All she could do was struggle against the restraints that held her down. The soldiers that Dyson had repurposed were stronger than she expected. Every fight against them seemed futile. Especially when cuffs were placed around her wrists. It wasn't until they had forced her helmet to collapse that she realized what Dyson was planning. That only enraged her further as she understood the severity of the situation. The cuffs were strong, and it seemed like the more she struggled, the stronger their hold became.

It only just dawned on her what was happening when a sickly orange gas filled the chamber. Her eyes widened in horror as she struggled further. She tried holding her breath in an attempt to protect herself. When that didn't help, any sense of reality seemed to sweep away. Her head was spinning. It felt as if someone was toying with her very thoughts, forcing her to proceed with the process. She tried to fight off the process, but it was helpless.

Any sense of fighting back was lost when her mind went blank. The first thing that she saw was empty darkness. A cold, endless expanse of oblivion. Then, words started forming in the back of her mind. They weren't known at first, but soon she began to understand the meaning behind them.

Perfection was freedom. The Grid was imperfect, unbalanced. Because of the Creator, it was left in chaos. The Son of Flynn had taken over and left programs with little hope of a better future. Clu was gone, because of the Creator. _Clu_ was the rightful leader of the Grid, one of the few programs who could bring peace to the Grid.

The blackness began to clear as she found herself standing in a room. Her head was throbbing with pain as she tried to comprehend what just happened. She looked around warily, only to find that she wasn't alone. Her eyes narrowed when she found a familiar program standing in front of her.

"Tell me, who do you serve?" he asked, his voice quiet enough that it didn't hurt.

She blinked a few times as if it was the dumbest question anyone could have asked.

"Clu," she replied, her voice surprisingly hoarse from lack of use.

The general merely smirked at that, and she was left feeling confused at the look he gave her.

"Good. Do you remember why you were brought here?"

She frowned as she tried to recall what had brought her here in the first place. All that she could remember up until now was darkness. And something else.

The images were faint, but she could picture being surrounded by programs… Programs who were Tron's agents. Her fists clenched at the memory of one of them mocking her for following Clu's orders. And then, the whole group had attacked at once, until she was rescued by _him_. She looked at the general in confusion once again.

"I-I don't remember my name… or how I got here," she admitted, sounding shaken as she realized what sort of physical damage these programs had done to her could have caused.

"You are my top soldier," the general explained with a reassuring smile. "When I saw what those… barbarians were doing to you, I stopped them. But by the time I did, you already lost consciousness. Your name is Shadow."

Shadow couldn't help but smile back as she realized that he was the one who saved her life. And she had the audacity to forget his name. Now she really felt foolish.

"I'm sorry… I can't remember your name," she said, figuring it was better to be honest than let it linger.

"Those soldiers hit you pretty hard on the head," he told her, once again sounding reassuring as he put a hand on her shoulder. "My name is Dyson."

Dyson… Somehow, that name sounded familiar, but not in a good way. Shadow tried to push the worry out of her mind, though. After all, Dyson was the one who had saved her. She owed him her life, if not anything that she could offer to him.

"Those programs that attacked me, they were Tron's enforcers, weren't they?" she asked after Dyson took her outside the room.

She found herself standing in what appeared to be an extensive hallway leading to who knew where. She would have to make a mental note of remembering where these hallways went.

"Yes, and they are the reason I have brought you here," Dyson replied as he led her to another room. Shadow rose an eyebrow as she saw extensive files that were kept on both Tron and the Renegade. Apparently, they had been causing more problems than she first realized. "The Grid was close to perfection when Clu was still in power. But with his death, it has fallen into chaos once again. Cities need to be cleansed of their imperfection, starting with Purgos."

Shadow was all too quick to agree with Dyson. He was right about the Grid being in chaos. After her encounter with those Enforcers, she had no doubt that they would try to hurt some other innocent program. They needed to be stopped, and the cities that refused to follow Clu's vision of perfection would also need to be cleansed.

"I would be more than happy to serve, under Clu's vision of perfection," she said after giving it some thought.

Dyson merely smirked once again at that, and Shadow was given the coordinates to place her first attack. She knew Purgos like the back of her hand. In fact, she knew most of the cities like the back of her hand. So her attacks would be quick, lethal, and leave everyone shaken. She wouldn't let Clu, or Dyson down. Not after what the Creator had done to them.

* * *

 **AN: I'm excited about this story... mostly because it will be very different from the original. A darker take on what I originally posted, and hopefully longer. Which means, it might take longer for me to post new chapters, because I'll be working on them. As for the typical warnings, I should warn readers ahead of time that there will be mentions of self-harm. Hopefully, this won't trigger anything.**

 **Retrokill - Hehe, glad I could do that :P And, I'm glad that you're enjoying them so much. Hopefully, you'll enjoy this one, too. I'll be interested to see what readers think of it :)**


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

Purgos was a city that had always been considered a boom town before Clu's takeover. Filled with the prospect of new jobs and opportunities that programs had never been given, they flocked their in numbers. The city had fallen into disrepair when Clu overthrew Flynn. Soon, it became nothing more than a garbage heap.

When the Son of Flynn had restored the Grid, he also rewrote the files regarding Purgos. Shadow eyed the city warily as she reached it, turning her light cycle back into a baton. She knew the layout of the city like the back of her hand. Equipped with grenades that would prove an effective way of destroying the city, she searched for the weak spots in question.

Programs eyed her suspiciously when she maintained a straight face throughout the procedure. She'd been careful enough to put on a disguise so they wouldn't recognize who she worked for. Dyson had warned her that Tron had followers, and from what it looked like, he was right.

She leaned forward, ready to attach a grenade when a program spotted her. Shadow stiffened from the initial stares that were thrown in her direction. Debating whether or not she should make a run for, she instead hid the grenade where the programs wouldn't see it. She knew they wouldn't hesitate to take her down if they saw the grenade in her hand. She had to strike in an area that wasn't so heavily populated with programs.

"What are you doing in the outskirts?" he asked, eyeing her up and down warily.

"I was sent here to survey the buildings and make sure they were up to code," she explained, keeping a straight face when she stood up and reached for her disk out of sheer instinct, "I'm an architect."

The program just rose an eyebrow, looking more than skeptical with her explanation. Letting out a sigh, Shadow pried her disk out of place and opened a few files, sifting through the memory banks she'd created. Dyson was the one who told her of her capabilities. According to him, she was programmed to redesign the Grid, and she could also modify whatever code she could by manipulating it. She wasn't entirely sure why she was gifted with so many abilities. Dyson had explained to her that the abilities she retained were a gift from Clu, who sought to use her as a method towards peace and perfection over the Grid.

"Looks like everything's in order, here," the program said uneasily after reading through the files. "Just make sure you're quick. A few of the programs around here are already uneasy as it is with all these disappearances happening, lately."

With a nod of agreement, Shadow resumed her role of observing and surveying the safety of these buildings. She waited until he was gone before placing the grenade at the weakest structure. A few more microcycles of this went by before she finally rezzed her light cycle and headed towards the outskirts of the city. She couldn't wait to see the look on Tron's face, or anyone else who followed him. They were in for a nasty surprise, as far as she was concerned.

…

The Grid was finally in a state of peace. The cities were now protected by programs who were trained personally by Tron. Sam Flynn managed to recreate the Grid in a way that was even better than the original. He wanted to give programs a chance at life that Clu had stripped from them when he took over. He was determined to live out the dream his father had envisioned years ago, without the problems caused by Clu. He'd even added a new feature that gave programs the chance to see what daylight was like, along with numerous other times of the day that occurred in the Real World. Overall, everything should have been perfect.

As was the way of things in life, the peace that followed didn't last long. Programs had gone missing while they were out on patrol. Tron didn't want Flynn or anyone else to find out until he figured out why this was happening in the first place. Part of it was his own stubbornness to prove that he could handle this on his own. Though, if Beck were being honest, he knew that this was something they needed help on. Something was clearly wrong, and, something told him that it would only get worse if they continued ignoring it.

Beck himself kept his distance from the programs who worked at Able's garage. They were not only working at the garage, but, they also were part of a small force to protect Argon City, home of the new headquarters. He couldn't bring himself to face them, even after they had learned to accept that Tron was still alive. Some small part of him was terrified that they would turn their backs on him. He still had nightmares every now and then, of things going horribly wrong.

It amazed him how much programs had changed since Flynn redesigned the Grid with Mira's help. Thanks to them, programs could finally see what a sunrise was like, and a sunset. It had shocked them at first when they realized what the sun was, but eventually they learned to accept that as well. The biggest change though was the fact that programs had begun to accept Users into their lives. Though some were still prejudice against Users because of Kevin Flynn's mistake in Clu, most of them had begun accepting the fact that Users were the reason they existed in the first place.

The only problem with Mira working alongside Sam and Quorra to redesign the Grid was that she didn't spend as much time here. Beck hadn't seen her for two mylacycles, and he was beginning to wonder if he would ever see her again. On top of working with the Son of Flynn and an ISO, Mira was constantly busy spending more time with Natasha and Clint, her biological parents. He supposed he couldn't blame her for wanting to spend more time with the Users who had finally accepted her as their daughter.

It was just difficult, knowing that they were two worlds apart. Literally. He always knew that Mira being a User would only complicate things. But, it had never been a problem until she started spending more time in the Real World.

"You're going to derezz if you don't get enough energy." Beck nearly leaped out of his suit at the sound of Paige's voice. The former commander smirked in amusement at his reaction and sat down beside him. "You know, it helps if you talk about your problems," she added.

"Is it that obvious?" Beck frowned when he realized that he'd probably looked like a wreck.

Honestly, he'd been working himself to the point of exhaustion every cycle. It kept him distracted from thoughts of the Real World and what Mira could be up to. At least, he hoped that it would keep him distracted from those thoughts. Of course, it hadn't helped much when he kept imagining every worst-case scenario that could happen to her.

"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?" Paige asked, and Beck let out a sigh before nodding. "She's been awfully busy lately, but I'm sure she'll find time to stop by and visit. You know, she actually isn't all that bad… considering she _is_ a User."

That was enough for Beck to narrow his eyes in annoyance. Paige was one of the few programs who hadn't really gotten used to the fact that Mira _was_ a User. He couldn't help but wonder how many other programs would act the same way; they never once gave her a chance. Programs shied away from her because she was a User, and, all the lies and rumors that Clu had spread about them hadn't helped matters.

"She's more than just a User," he snapped irritably.

After everything they had been through, he wouldn't let anyone talk about her as if she was nothing. Mira was so much more than just a User. She had proven time and time again that she was stronger than anyone realized.

"I know she is," Paige murmured thoughtfully. She looked down at the floor, her eyes narrowed as she tried to recall something from her past. "She was the one who saved me from Cyrus. I know that I should be grateful, but sometimes… I wonder if it was worth saving me," she sighed.

He stared at her in surprise when she said that. Paige was a complicated program. From day one he had always liked her, and wasn't afraid to admit that at one point, he had feelings for her. She had a fiery spirit in her that would always burn. But it was only because of what general Tesler had done to her friends in the hospital that she was that way. He wondered if she would be any different had fate worked differently that cycle.

Neither of them had discussed their relationship after she chose to leave for Bismuth, and Beck had left with Mira through the Portal. The same unspoken kinship he felt towards Paige was always there when the Grid was restored. She fought alongside him when Mira couldn't, and had proven to become an invaluable partner.

She was about to leave when a light cycle suddenly approached them. Paige stopped in time to see Tron pull on the breaks, and his mask receded. He didn't look happy. Then again, Beck had rarely seen Tron actually look happy. Tron looked at Beck, his expression serious as ever.

"We have a problem," he told them.

Paige exchanged an anxious look with Beck, who only seemed more worried than before. Just when it seemed like the Grid was finally at peace, things seemed to spiral out of control. Beck knew that the peace would only last for so long. With problems consisting of Gridbugs and viruses, there was always something they had to worry about.

"And, I'm guessing it isn't anything good," he muttered, brushing the back of his hair with his hand.

Tron only glared at him in response before leading the way to HQ. Headquarters was actually where Tron used to keep the safehouse, but it was upgraded to a much larger building to house so many programs. From here this was where Sam Flynn would meet with Tron and discuss whatever needed fixing or whatever was needed in general. It was also the only place where SHIELD could keep in touch with Tron if things got dicey on the Grid.

Tron led them into a room where a monitor overlooked the Outlands, just like the original safehouse. Paige rose an eyebrow upon seeing the SHIELD logo on the corner of the screen. She had met Natasha and Clint once or twice, and they hadn't seemed like bad Users. But there was especially something about Natasha that she couldn't trust. Paige hadn't spoken much about her lack of trust in the redhead, but Beck suspected it was because Natasha looked so much like Mira. Both were cold and distant towards those they didn't trust. They acted so similar in so many ways that it was almost uncanny.

The moment they arrived in the room was when Beck realized they weren't alone. His anxiety turned quickly to panic when he saw Natasha and Clint waiting for them in the room. Paige's eyes narrowed as she realized something serious must have happened if these two were here. Neither rarely showed up unless they had some serious news to share from the Real World, or talk to Mira when she wasn't with them.

"Alright, security monitor, where is she?"

None of them had a chance to answer Clint's question when an alarm suddenly sounded. Beck couldn't imagine what was worse than having two highly trained SHIELD agents in the room until seeing what the alarm was blaring for. Tron had already opened the security footage, eyes widening in horror when the images became clear enough for everyone to see.

Paige let out a gasp of utter shock when she saw the state that Purgos was in. Sam had reworked the Grid so that every city destroyed by Clu was redesigned. After seeing the mess the cities were in after Clu was merged with Flynn, Sam wanted to reassure everyone that they would all have a place to live. Most of the programs had been wary with the idea of having decent cities to live in, but once they found out what Sam was capable of, they jumped at the opportunity. But, that didn't do the programs in Purgos any good when half of it was destroyed.

Beck felt his stomach twist with disgust when he saw pixels coating the ground where programs once stood. It looked like a scene from a horror movie. He wasn't sure what would have led a program to destroy a city like this and take out so many other innocent programs. The only thought that crossed his mind was how cynical Clu had been before he was finally taken care of. And Cyrus was another insane program who was also locked in a prison in the Real World. So that didn't leave him with too many options of guessing who could be responsible for this mess.

"So, I take it the Grid isn't 'at peace'," Clint scoffed when the security footage stopped. "You wanna explain what the hell's going on?"

Tron only rolled his eyes before playing the video back and zooming in to get a better view of the destruction. Beck hadn't missed the fact that someone was standing at the top of a building, their arms crossed in satisfaction as they watched the chaos unfold. What had sent shivers of fear through him were the words coated in blue pixels across a fallen building.

" _COURTESY OF YOUR OLD FRIEND_."

…

Shadow couldn't help but grin at her triumphant work. Those blue pixels were really what had brought out the best in what she did. Using Free Code and whatever bits of data were left from the programs she'd derezzed, she spelled out a clear message for all to see. It was meant as a warning to anyone who thought of arguing against Dyson's methods, or fighting against Clu's vision of perfection. Once she was certain that there was only one survivor left to tell the tale, she returned to the base.

Dyson had bases scattered throughout the Outlands. As a secondary precaution, he had guards placed within every base. Tron's enforcers had come close to finding the bases, on more than one occasion. Shadow remembered hearing him mention that Tron was determined to bring him down, and continue spreading chaos and lies throughout the Grid. Fortunately, the main base wasn't all that difficult to reach. All of the bases eventually led to his main throne room where only the highest and most trustworthy and loyal soldiers worked. The nanocycle she had returned was when she saw Dyson already waiting for her.

"You did well," he reassured her when her mask receded. Dyson had warned her that programs might try to take advantage of her if she showed her face. So keeping a mask on was even more important, especially when these missions took place. "Purgos will soon understand why it had to be cleansed." Shadow simply nodded in agreement and tossed him her disk, so that he could see for himself what sort of damage was done. His smirk only grew wider as he saw the words that were left to warn any program of their keen work. "I like your particular choice of words, and the fact that you left one survivor."

He promptly returned the disk after sifting through her memories.

"Well, I figured the scare tactic would work wonders," Shadow replied with a shrug. "It's amazing how effective it can be, especially when said program is already a weak architect to begin with."

"Good work, soldier. Now, get some rest," Dyson told her. "I'll be sure to assign you to the next mission when the time arrives."

Shadow simply nodded at that, taking orders like any good soldier would. As she left, Dyson was left in awe of the amount of time and effort she had put into destroying a single city. He never would have imagined that this was the same User Clu had tortured xilacycles ago. Or the same User that had fought with such ferocity a mere few cycles ago. It was almost pathetic, in a sense, what repurposing could do to someone.

Truthfully, what Zena had said left him feeling a bit worried. Clu had experimented on the User. He gave her enhancements that few knew about. Dyson was able to make out a few of them, such as inhuman strength, agility and natural healing. That was only a small portion of what Dyson could make out.

"I don't like this," one of the soldiers whispered as Dyson approached, not noticing his arrival until it was too late. "Something about that soldier doesn't feel right."

Dyson stopped for a moment and smirked as the two soldiers stiffened with fear. But just for a quick nanocycle, Dyson decided to humor him. His state of calm was what had driven most of the soldiers into fearful obedience. Even they dared not make attempts at angering him. While he didn't _show_ his anger, often, they knew when he reached that point.

"And what, may I ask, doesn't feel right?" he asked, feeling genuinely curious.

The soldiers blinked in confusion at the oddly pleasant tone he spoke in. This was not the Dyson they were used to, and they were suddenly wary of his imposing demeanor.

"The User, sir. Something about the way she's acting… keeping her in our ranks. It just doesn't feel right," he explained with a shrug. "It just feels… unnatural."

Dyson's look of amusement turned to a scowl of disgust. That User was his weapon. His tool to cleanse the Grid of imperfection. She may not be aware of his plans now, but, she would be soon enough. She was changed into his view of perfection. And nothing would ever change that. Not even Tron or the Renegade, who seemed so determined to keep her and the Grid safe.

Without wasting a nanocycle, Dyson reached for his disk and activated it. The soldier wasn't even given the chance to react when he suddenly sliced the disk across his stomach, leaving a deep gash. Nanocycles later, pixels scattered along the floor, leaving his partner gaping in utter horror.

"I want this mess cleaned up immediately!" Dyson snapped to the soldier who had watched in appalled horror. "Let this be a warning to anyone who dares question my motives," he added in a dangerously low tone.

The soldier was all too willing to comply with nothing left to say. Once he had left to clean the floors, Dyson nodded in satisfaction. This was exactly what Clu would have wanted. To strike fear in the eyes of his soldiers, and inspire the programs who seemed to oppose him. One way or another, programs would see things his way.

…

Mara bit the bottom of her lip as she studied the complicated code in front of her. A few cycles had passed since she was asked by Able to fix this light cycle. The code had become corrupted after the rider drove through the Outlands and was ambushed by Gridbugs. Apparently, the Gridbugs themselves had carried bits and pieces of codes that turned the light cycle into a mess. The good news was, Mara and Zed were working together to fix the code so that it wouldn't malfunction again.

"… can't believe Purgos was left in shambles." Mara flinched when she heard Zed and Link talking as they arrived late for work, as usual. "And now Tron's letting those Users stay. I don't know what's fishier."

"I'll admit, that red-head User terrifies me," Link muttered. "Did you see the way she was glaring at everyone?"

"What happened in Purgos?" she asked, standing up after realizing something had gone horribly wrong.

Mention of Users made everyone feel uneasy. Even if the Son of Flynn had recreated the Grid, there were still some programs who weren't overly fond of Users. It left a bad taste in everyone's tongues as they remembered the malicious lies that Clu once spread on Users. Though, Mara wasn't willing to admit that she would have been the first to turn the User that Clu had captured all those cycles ago. That User in particular, who had also been seen with Beck at one point or another, had unnerved everyone.

"Someone destroyed the entire city," Zed explained after he realized she'd heard almost everything. "And on top of it, those two Users that were with the Rogue decided to return."

Now, Mara understood what the problem was. Zed had a nasty run-in with the Users who were somehow related to the Rogue when they first arrived on the Grid. Ever since then, he had tried keeping his distance from them and the Rogue, for good reasons. Then again, there was always something about those Users that had always left everyone feeling uneasy. The redhead in particular always left Mara wondering if they could be trusted.

"Isn't Tron supposed to watch out for threats like that?" Mara asked, narrowing her eyes as she wondered how anyone could do such a terrible thing.

"Yeah, but this was something even _he_ couldn't track down," Link told her, suddenly aware of the danger they were all in. If one city fell, it wouldn't be long before they all fell. "I just knew that the peace was too good to be true."

Mara didn't really blame Link for feeling so worried. She may not have been around long enough to know what it was like before Clu took over, but something very similar was happening right now. If another program who followed Clu's ideal for perfection was still alive, they would surely start by striking fear in the hearts of programs.

"He isn't going to take this sitting down," she decided out loud. Zed and Link looked at her in confusion. "Tron. He wouldn't let programs suffer because of one reckless action."

Both mechanics could agree with her on that one. Knowing full well that Tron had set his sights on the program responsible should have made them feel better. But Mara couldn't shake off the feeling that this was only the beginning of the chaos that would follow. Something far worse was going to happen.

* * *

 **AN: Well, there's the first official chapter. I know that it's choppy and has quite a lot of scene-skips, but, I wanted to add as much as possible into one chapter. Almost all of them will probably feel like that, unfortunately. I also apologize in advance for how slow my progress may be in updating. I'm actually taking my time with this story as much as I can; I want everything to fall into place, unlike the original, which had quite a lot of loopholes in it. So, with that being said, thanks in advance for your patience, and, to Flicka the Light Beast for reviewing!**

 **Flicka the Light Beast - Thank you for reviewing! I have checked out the first chapter of your story, and do find it interesting. Though, I would recommend moving it to the movie section rather than the show. You'll actually get more viewers, that way. Sadly, most people don't even know there's an Uprising section on this site. Thanks again for reviewing, it's appreciated :)**


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

It took a few nanocycles for Tron to fully focus on the message written with pixels. Beck felt sick at the thought that someone had used such a gruesome method to write out a message. What made it worse was when Tron found the real threat hidden within that message.

' _Dyson_ ' was written out, tiny enough that one had to magnify the screen to get a clearer picture. That alone sent shivers of rage through Beck. He realized with a start that one of Clu's top generals had survived. To make matters worse, he was continuing the work Clu had left him.

Tron's circuits were hot white with rage as he saw the writing on the wall. Beck couldn't imagine what was worse – the destruction of Purgos, or the fact that Dyson was still alive. The message he had left was clear enough. He was here to finish what Clu had started.

"We've got bigger problems to worry about," Tron snapped as he tried searching for the code of the program that had caused this destruction. "You two can solve your problem in the Real World."

Beck knew that wasn't going to happen, at least not in the User's perspective. Both Natasha and Clint were stubborn enough to know when something was wrong. They may not have seen the Grid when Clu was in power, but, they had seen it through Mira's memories. If that was any indication of what was going on, they were in for a nasty surprise.

And, sure enough, Clint fired a warning arrow in Tron's direction. Beck stepped aside and watched the fight unfold. Even with all of his SHIELD training, Clint stood no chance against Tron as he pinned him to the floor in nanocycles. Even Natasha looked impressed with how easily Tron had taken him down.

"This is a waste of time," Paige said under her breath, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

While this User was wasting his time fighting, they could have already helped several programs in Purgos. This was their job, after all. If it did have anything to do with Dyson, like the message said, he needed to be dealt with quickly. And, it seemed as if Natasha agreed with her.

"You're acting like children," she muttered crossly.

"Look, what happened?" Beck asked before anything got worse.

Clint was shooting dagger-like glares at Tron as he finally let him up after holding him down a few microcycles. Something told him this was far from over between the two. The archer had never quite gotten used to the fact that Tron acted more like a father-figure to Mira then he ever would. Though, Beck suspected there was more going on there then meets the eye.

He'd seen firsthand how overprotective Clint was of Mira since finding out what had happened to her. After he'd begun to notice how easily she and Tron worked together, Beck couldn't necessarily blame the archer for feeling so annoyed with him.

"Mira disappeared about two weeks ago," Natasha explained warily, her expression impossible to read.

Paige's eyes widened at the mention of the User that Beck was always with. She remembered the way Mira had refused to trust anyone, even her, after the Grid was recreated by the Son of Flynn. Now, she understood why Beck was so worried.

He was all too aware of the fact that Mira could take care of herself on the Grid. But being gone for two weeks was more troubling than he would like to admit. He couldn't remember noticing if a Portal had opened up in that time-span. Tron had kept him busy searching for the missing programs all that time.

"Don't you think it's a little coincidental that she would disappear and than this would happen?" Clint asked, his eyes narrowing at the sight of Purgos.

 _He can't possibly think she's responsible for this_ , Beck thought, eyes widening with panic. Mira would never do such a thing. Sure she could have a short temper, and probably had more issues than he realized, but she would never stoop so low.

"We need to find out how Dyson managed to pull this off," Tron said, ignoring Clint's question. But Beck hadn't missed the worry in Tron's eyes. Something told him he knew more than he was letting on. "Paige, you're going with me to Purgos." Paige's eyes widened in surprise before she nodded in agreement, all too eager to prove herself. "I want you to keep an eye on them, make sure they don't cause any trouble."

It didn't take long for Paige to grab whatever she needed before following Tron out of HQ. Beck was left with the two Users he dreaded spending 'quality' time with. He may have gotten to know them better, but things were still uneasy between them. Especially when Clint had found out that he was dating his daughter.

"So, let me get this straight, Mira goes missing for two weeks, and all he cares about is finding this 'Dyson' guy?" Clint demanded, eyes dark with fury.

Beck couldn't blame him for being pissed off, especially with how Tron had pretty much brushed off their warning. If what they said was true, then it was possible something could have happened to Mira. Unease crawled through him at the thought. While Mira was fully capable of taking care of herself, he couldn't shake off the feeling that this time, she hadn't been able to defend herself.

"Tron and Dyson share an… uneasy past," Beck explained, hoping that might alleviate whatever worries they were feeling.

But, even he had to admit that he was more than just worried for Mira's sake. She had already suffered from so much; the last thing he wanted was for things to go from bad to worse. Especially when things had finally started looking up.

Dyson's Betrayal had taken a toll on Tron, both physically and mentally. Not only had Tron already tried getting revenge on Dyson, but it was also the moment where Mira's trust in him had started to dwindle. Not that she hadn't trusted him much to begin with.

"He's a former general working under Clu," Natasha said, earning looks of surprise from both Beck and Clint. So, Natasha knew more about Dyson than he realized. Somehow, he wasn't too surprised by that. "So, Dyson survived after Clu's fall, and now he's out for revenge."

"Well, at least we know who to beat the crap out of when he's caught," Clint muttered crossly.

Beck rose an eyebrow at that. Something told him they would do far worse to Dyson than Tron could.

But still, Beck couldn't help but wonder if Mira's disappearance and this attack on Purgos had some kind of connection. Clint might have a good point in what he had said earlier. Beck didn't want to think that Mira was capable of destroying an entire city, but he knew that she was, especially given her ability to modify code on the Grid.

 _Please let them be wrong_ , he begged silently. She had already suffered enough, and Beck could only imagine what this was going to do to her if his theory was right.

…

News of Mira's disappearance had left Tron reeling with shock. Clint was right about one thing. Her disappearance and the attack on Purgos was a little too coincidental for his liking. He didn't have the heart to tell Beck, or anyone else for that matter his own theory.

It didn't take long for the two of them to reach their destination. With the possibilities of the threat still being in the area, they needed to take extra precaution. The remains of Purgos was a mess of rubble and torn apart code.

Whoever had done this knew precisely where to strike. That was what bothered Tron more than anything else. How could Dyson let this happen? Was this to provoke them into attacking? Or was there a hidden message in this attack?

"I never liked Dyson to begin with. Even Tesler wasn't too fond of him, and that's saying something," Paige muttered after getting off her light cycle. "But, this is going too far."

Pixels crunched under her feet as she walked. They were the shattered remains of programs, likely fleeing from the scene. A shiver ran through Paige when she realized what these programs had gone through. She could only imagine the horror they must have felt as their homes were destroyed, and when they soon met the same fate. This was hauntingly similar to the ISO incident.

"We need to look for any clues that might lead to why this happened," Tron told her.

Paige was experienced enough with situations like this. He just hoped that Beck could keep those Users from delving deeper into this mystery. If what he feared was true, then everyone's lives were in danger.

Paige kept close to the edge of the city, exploring a building that was somehow still standing. Half of the roof had been torn apart, collapsing in on itself. And the front of the building had a gaping hole that left it exposed to the elements.

Her eyes widened when she caught something moving in the building. Reaching for her disk on pure instinct, she activated it and prepared for the worst. Gridbugs were drawn to destruction and a masses of code. Tron wouldn't be surprised if that was what waited for them.

What they weren't expecting was to find a program lurched under a pile of rubble. The program was struggling to free himself from the beams that had held up the building. Paige glanced at Tron in alarm before pulling off the beams, while Tron pulled the program out of the building.

"Tron, thank you!" the program gasped.

Part of his leg had been badly injured, along with a few scratches along his torso. Paige immediately went to work on fixing the code, making sure that he didn't derezz on them. Not for the first time, she had to thank her training as a medic for saving his leg. It would take a while for it to respawn, but at least it was repairable code.

"What happened here?" Tron asked while she worked.

"I was alone in the building when that explosion shook the city," the program explained. "It happened so quickly. One minute everything was fine, and the next, I found myself being crushed."

He grimaced as Paige put his disk back in place.

"Did you happen to get a look at who did this?"

Though, he had been in the building, perhaps he had gotten a look at anyone who might seem suspicious. Although, in a place like Purgos, just about everyone looked suspicious. Flynn may have rewritten the code to make Purgos a bit more livable since Clu's fall, but that didn't mean programs fell into old habits.

"No… I'm sorry," he admitted, sounding guilty. "Whoever did this was fast, faster than any program I could think of."

Tron exchanged a wary look with Paige. For now, they would take this program to Argon City. At least he had survived, and as far as Tron could tell after scanning the city, he was the only survivor.

…

Users were such strange creatures. Beck couldn't be bothered to figure out why they were off on missions to defend Users from other Users who were more dangerous. He had to admit, he was fascinated with how well Mira had handled the missions she was sent on with other SHIELD agents. What bothered him more than anything was the fact that she had agreed on joining them in these missions.

Beck knew that Mira wanted nothing to do with SHIELD, from what she had told him. But, these missions were also some of the few times she could spend with her birth parents. In a way, it made sense that she would want to join them and learn more about them… and possibly learn more about herself.

Fortunately, he was saved from having to chat with them for too long. Right now, Clint looked bored, fumbling with his arrows while Natasha spoke with Director Fury. Having the place rigged thanks to Sam and Tony meant that communication with Users was so much easier. Talking to these two was like talking to someone who might as well be a robot… or repurposed. Beck knew there would always be tension between them, because he and Mira were dating. Clint never did particularly enjoy hearing that bit of news.

It felt like cycles had passed by the time Tron returned. Beck was surprised that Paige wasn't by his side. Something must have happened at what was left of Purgos. And judging from Tron's expression, it wasn't anything good.

"We found one survivor," Tron reported before anyone could ask what had happened. "They didn't have much of a description of the attacker."

"So, other than that nothing serious happened," Clint concluded with the slightest smirks.

The look Tron gave him was priceless. Beck had to wonder why Clint never took anything seriously. At least with situations like this. He knew that Clint could be deadly serious, especially when it came to keeping Mira safe. It always amazed him at how the User could switch personalities so quickly – from someone who acted like a complete idiot, to a serious father who clearly cared about his daughter.

"You two should leave before things get worse."

Tron's response was curt, but Beck didn't miss the worry in his voice. He glanced at his mentor in surprise. He didn't normally rebuke Users unless it was for a good reason. For someone who fought for the Users, Tron was acting strangely cold around Natasha and Clint.

"Not until we find out what happened to Mira," Natasha replied. "Director Fury just informed me that she was last seen at her apartment, before she disappeared. That was two weeks ago, when the Digitizer was last activated," she added before Tron could argue.

Chills swept down Beck's arms. Two weeks ago she had disappeared. And five days ago, the Digitizer had been activated. Beck could only imagine that meant she had been on the Grid at some point. So if that was the case, then where was she now?

Tron just folded his arms and looked at the two Users thoughtfully.

"If what you're saying is true, then finding her now will be impossible," he explained. "Like Flynn, she has discovered what Users can do on the Grid, and that included hiding herself from security programs."

Though, if he was being honest, Mira had been able to hide from him long before that. Unease swept through Beck as he remembered how she was able to hide herself from Tron long before they met. She hadn't changed that modification on her disk, and Beck doubted she would want to.

"Can't you just let SHIELD hack into the system and find her?"

Tron stiffened at the mention of SHIELD, and Beck rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Allowing SHIELD to hack into the system is asking for trouble," the security monitor snapped before Clint or Natasha could reason with him. "Once we let them hack into the system, what's going to stop them from doing so again?"

Beck frowned at that. He hadn't thought of what would happen if the Users got confident or bold enough to hack into the system more than once. If they did manage to succeed in pulling off that stunt, there was no telling what would happen to the Grid.

He couldn't help but shake his head when he realized that one thing was clear: At this rate, they would never get anywhere. Tron was acting like this wasn't a problem at all. The fact that Mira was missing to begin with should have sent some kind of warning sign. Beck was just hoping that things didn't get any worse from here on. Otherwise they were all going to be in trouble.

…

"I want you to cut off communication throughout the Grid." Shadow watched Dyson warily as he approached her with a new order. She knew it was only a matter of time before he returned with new orders. This one, though, seemed like an impossible task meant only for security monitors. "Don't worry about modifying the code; your administrative powers will allow you to access any information needed to shut it down."

"Yes, sir," she replied without hesitation.

She understood that cutting off communication would mean programs wouldn't be able to figure out what was going on until it was too late. Dyson's plan was almost cynical, in a way. She had to admit, if this was how they managed to stop Tron and his enforcers, it was better than nothing.

It took a few microcycles before Shadow was able to figure out how to modify the code itself. She couldn't hide the smirk that followed when she pulled the code apart. Rewriting it was easier than it sounded. Once she was able to figure out how the coding worked, the rest of her task went smoothly, and quickly.

She was proud of what she had been able to accomplish with such a short time-frame. Considering she only just discovered that she was able to modify code, it meant there was so much more she could do. Maybe this was how she would start taking down Tron and his enforcers.

"You truly are a vision of perfection, Shadow," Dyson smirked with triumph when she finished. "Now, I would love to see what Clu has really given you, as far as enhancements are concerned."

For a moment, Shadow thought of arguing with him. The moment the thought crossed her mind, though her vision blurred slightly. Shadow flinched as she remembered _why_ she had joined Clu's army in the first place. He'd chosen her for a reason, and she needed to follow through on his orders. Even if it didn't feel right, the latter part of her mind kept telling her that following orders was the best option. Dyson was only doing this to keep her safe from Tron's hands. If she did somehow end up getting captured by Tron or his enforcers again, there was no telling what they would do to her,

 _It can't be any worse than what they did to me before I lost my memories_ , she thought bitterly.

Dyson had been able to restore what memories she lost before she blacked out. The more she remembered, the more she began to understand why he was trying to take back what had been stolen from him. Programs who followed Tron blindly were too far gone to realize that everything he did was wrong. Only through perfection would they be safe. Only through perfection would the Grid truly be at peace once and for all.

She didn't struggle as she allowed Dyson to take her disk and start sifting through the files that were normally protected with a failsafe. He couldn't hide the wicked grin that followed when he managed to find the files that Clu had hidden away. Once Dyson was finished with his new toy, there would be nothing left of the User that Tron and the Renegade had fought so hard to protect.

* * *

 **AN: Thank you Snips for reviewing!**

 **Snips - Thanks! I have been looking forward to this story, so I'm glad readers are enjoying it, so far :)**


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Throughout the bickering of the three, Beck had decided to take the chance to leave. Tron could deal with these Users on his own. He was fully capable of taking them on at once if a fight broke out, though Beck doubted that would happen. Maybe Clint would be itching for a fight, but Natasha would hold back. At least she had enough restraint to know that attacking wasn't the right answer. All the while, Beck was still trying to figure out what was really going on.

With the recent attack on Purgos, everyone was on edge. The program that Paige had rescued was retelling stories of how the city had been destroyed in nanocycles. Beck glanced in their direction, hoping to get a better look at the program. He had short brown hair with white and green circuits running along his suit. Everyone seemed interested to hear what he had to tell. Paige leaned against the wall as he talked in a hushed whisper, as if afraid someone might be listening in on them.

He frowned at the sight. Whatever had happened was obviously so traumatic that the program didn't want to explain what had happened to him. At least not without making sure no one would hurt him. Beck realized with a start that whoever struck Purgos left him alive for a reason. His survival was clearly meant to be used as a message to everyone, and that thought alone was enough for his stomach to twist with disgust.

"Hey, we heard what happened!" Beck flinched when he recognized Mara's voice. Standing beside her was Zed, who looked nervous as all eyes turned towards them. "Is it true?" Mara leaned forward as the survivor nodded. "How could this happen? Wasn't there anyone around to watch out for anything dangerous?"

She glanced anxiously towards Beck's direction, then to Paige.

"It happened so quickly that we never had a chance to strike back," Paige replied with a shrug. "Even if we had been there on time, there wasn't anything we could do. Whoever attacked the city knew exactly where to strike."

Mara's face fell at the realization. Even with Tron and his team constantly patrolling, they could not prevent this from happening. Beck felt his fists tightening with frustration. First this had to happen, and now no one seemed to know what had happened to Mira.

Before Mara could say anything else, the sound of footsteps coming down the hall echoed. For a moment Beck thought it was Tron, reporting that Clint and Natasha had left. But his eyes widened when he saw the two Users standing behind Tron, looking more frustrated than ever.

"Someone managed to shut down communication," Tron announced as everyone stared at him in surprise.

Then they all looked warily at Clint and Natasha.

"That's impossible," Paige retorted. "Only someone with administrative power can shut down communication."

She was right about that much. Only Tron had administrative powers as far as Beck was aware. Unless Sam Flynn had given someone else that kind of power, though he doubted it. Sam wouldn't resort to giving someone those kind of capabilities. He might have only talked to the guy every once in a while, but he knew Flynn wouldn't stoop to Clu's level.

A shiver of unease ran through Beck as he thought of someone else who was capable of shutting down communication. He knew of someone who could modify code like it was nothing, and turn it to their advantage. But he wasn't willing to say anything. Unfortunately, Zed was.

"Or a User could shut it down," Zed pointed out warily.

Beck bit the bottom of his lip at the thought. A User could be working for Dyson. It was possible he had shut down communication to keep Tron from asking Sam to shut him down from the outside. The plan was almost full proof, actually, as much as Beck hated admitting it.

"There's no turning back now," Clint said, crossing his arms as he glared at Tron. "So, either you can let us help, or we can make this worse than it needs to be."

Tron pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. All this talk of a User shutting down communication had put everyone on edge with Clint and Natasha. Beck was surprised no one had blamed them for what was happening.

"As much as I hate to say it, Clint's right," Natasha pointed out. "We can't return to the Real World without activating the Digitizer from the outside."

 _Well, now you'll know what it's like to be stuck here_ , Beck thought, narrowing his eyes as he realized Mira had been in the same situation, only for a much longer period of time. He glanced at the others uneasily, noticing how tense they now were.

Beck looked at Tron uncertainly as he thought over what to tell everyone. Should they go back to business as usual, or should he tell everyone that this was all Dyson's fault? Beck had a feeling that would only stir panic. The last thing they needed right now was for programs to jump to conclusions. Zed's suggestion had already put everyone on edge when they realized that the only two Users on the Grid were Natasha and Clint, and not too many programs trusted them for a good reason.

"I assume you two know how to operate a light cycle?" Tron asked, tossing both Natasha and Clint a baton. Beck rose an eyebrow in surprise as the two Users nodded. So, Mira _had_ been teaching them basic survival techniques on the Grid after all. "We're making a stop in the Outlands. There's someone I'd like to have a chat with before we jump to conclusions."

That caught Beck's attention. There were still some things about the Grid that even _he_ didn't know about. Obviously, Tron would know more about the secrets that the Grid held.

"What about us?" Paige asked warily.

Her eyes were still on Clint and Natasha. Everyone was already on edge, with recent events. Beck couldn't necessarily blame Paige for not putting her trust in people she didn't know. Natasha and Clint were not the easiest Users to get along with, in the first place.

"You need to stay here," Tron told her. "If anyone launches an attack on Argon, they need capable fighters to protect them."

Paige did not look happy being left behind on an important mission. But she knew better than to argue. Whatever Tron was up to, she just hoped he knew what he was himself into.

…

He watched in amusement as the soldier tossed one of his top warriors to the floor like they were nothing. Several others were groaning as they struggled to get back to their feet. This training session had gone much better than he expected. The only problem was, the soldier was also derezzing some of the programs that had been part of her training regime. Dyson knew that he should have allowed her to derezz them. After all, the programs she fought against had done nothing but babble like senseless idiots once he repurposed them. It wasn't as if he'd be losing anything by letting them derezz.

"Enough," he announced when the soldier was about to derezz one of his repurposed guards. "Keep derezzing them, and I won't have any guards left."

The soldier's mask receded, revealing the pouting face of a young girl.

"Ah, come on," she muttered crossly after kicking the guard aside instead of using her disk to give him the final blow. "It's only fun when they're screaming for mercy."

"You know I need those guards."

Shadow only crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

"Of course," she replied with a confirming nod. "What I don't understand is why you turn them into mindless drones. It would be more interesting to see what they're like with their personalities intact."

Dyson didn't know what was more ironic. The fact that Shadow was now treating the guards as if they were worthless drones, or the fact that just a couple of cycles ago, she had acted the same. It was only thanks to altering a few bits of code from her disk that he could alter her personality to his liking.

He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, knowing that she needed to take her aggravation out on something other than the guards. He'd already planned on striking at the heart of Tron's safehouse before they could recover from the Purgos incident. If he was able to succeed with this mission, then it would mean he was one step closer to achieving his goal.

"I want you to take down Argon City," he explained once they were alone. Shadow merely raised an eyebrow in surprise at his sudden change in tactics. "But leave Tron and the 'Renegade' alive. I want to see the looks on their faces when their precious city is destroyed."

It was even more ironic that all of the soldiers and guards under his command were once loyal followers of Tron. The soldier smirked at the thought of what Tron would do when he found out about the city's destruction.

"Shouldn't be too difficult. Argon City wouldn't be the first one I've destroyed," she murmured thoughtfully.

She was still proud of her work with Purgos. It was reduced to nothing more than a pile of rubble by the time she was finished with it. When she managed to find every weak point in the city, she placed a grenade on each location. It had been easy to destroy an entire city that was just a pile of rubble in the first place.

"Good. Keep your face covered, and use this weapon upgrade," Dyson ordered, tossing her the weapon upgrade she had used to destroy Purgos. Not that she really needed it. Given the enhancements that Clu had given her, she could easily do this with her hands tied behind her back. "You know what to do."

Shadow merely smirked before running out of the base after gathering the weapons she would need. This was going to be fun.

…

Tron didn't say much as he led the way through the Outlands. Natasha and Clint were keeping a close eye out for any enemies that might lurk in the shadows. Ever since communication was taken out, the day and night cycles had stopped. It was like the Grid was locked in a never-ending battle of darkness, and Beck hated it. It reminded him too much of what the Grid was like when Clu ruled it. He was grateful that Flynn had given the Grid night and day cycles. That modification had been one of the best options Flynn could have given the Grid.

He wished there was something he could have done to prevent this from happening at all. But he had a feeling that fate would have played its cruel hands on the Grid no matter what they did. It seemed as if they were always doomed to suffer the consequences of someone wanting to follow in Clu's footsteps. Maybe if they had been more prepared for the situation, it wouldn't have happened. But it was too late now, and they needed to fix the problem before it got worse.

Eventually, Tron pulled to a stop when they reached what appeared to be a barren landscape. Beck looked at him in confusion while Natasha and Clint struggled to pull their light cycles to a stop. Once they had, Tron climbed off of his light cycle and tapped on the ground a series of code on with his boot once he reached a certain spot on the ground. Beck rose an eyebrow in surprise at the sight, wondering where the security monitor was getting at with his unusual tapping.

"Okay, what the hell is going on?" Clint muttered after Beck turned their light cycles back into batons. Tron ignored him as the ground suddenly gave way in front of them. Beck's eyes widened in disbelief as a set of stairs led down to darkness. "That's… not creepy at all," Clint added, narrowing his eyes at the odd sight.

"The Grid holds more secrets than anyone can imagine," Tron explained as he led the way down the stairs. "Flynn built this place to keep track of important records and data. But it was forgotten by the time of the Betrayal."

Beck had to admit, this place creeped even him out. It was dark, damp and cold. He didn't like it. But the moment they had reached the bottom of the stairs was when lights began flickering on all around them. He couldn't help but gape in amazement as rows upon rows of files and data appeared in front of them. Sitting in front of the rows was a single large desk with a small light and a stool.

"Alright, this is pretty amazing," Beck admitted sheepishly.

That was when he noticed they weren't alone. Clint reached instinctively for his bow and arrow when Tron stopped both Users from attacking. Both just threw him icy looks that told Beck this was far from over. He nearly rolled his eyes at their reactions, knowing that fighting was the last thing anyone needed.

"I should hope my home is amazing." Beck felt a chill run down his arms when a female voice sounded. His eyes narrowed when a female program emerged from the shadows. Her suit was black with primary white circuits, and her hair was white as well. But that wasn't what had made Beck flinch. It was her eyes that made him realize she couldn't actually _see_ them. "Tron… it has been many, many xilacycles," she added in a slightly accusing tone.

"Who is she?" Natasha asked warily.

The program's eyes narrowed as she looked in her direction, causing both Users to stiffen in surprise.

"I may be blind, but I am not deaf," she snapped. "I am the Archive Keeper. It is a prestigious title, and one that Flynn entrusted me with. Be thankful that you are welcome here at all, Users."

Tron took a step forward, ignoring the fact that Natasha and Clint were stunned into silence.

"Zena, you know why I'm here." Zena nodded in understanding.

"I am afraid there is not much I can do," she told him, her voice solemn as she gestured to the rows of files and data. "You know as well as I that I am forbidden from interfering with anyone outside the Archive."

Tron simply nodded understanding as well before walking over to one of the rows. Beck stood by, his arms crossed as Zena kept looking in his direction. Even if she couldn't see, it felt as if she could see right _through_ him. A few nanocycles of awkward silence followed before Tron returned with bits of data and some files in his arms.

"Is there anything here about where Mira might be?" Beck asked in a hopeful tone.

He hadn't missed the way Zena bowed her head, almost as if she was ashamed by his question, or something worse that had happened.

"How is this going to help us?" Natasha asked as she studied a file on Dyson that Tron had pulled out.

"If there's one thing I've learned over the xilacycles, it's that Dyson never quits," Tron explained icily. "He's clever enough to know when to wait, and when to strike next. He also knows all of Clu's contingency plans."

Beck was beginning to wish that Tron had derezzed Dyson when he had the chance. The more he heard about Dyson, the more he hated the former general. Something needed to be done about him, especially when he saw the look of horror written across Tron's face.

"That son of a bitch knows how to repurpose humans?" Clint asked, his voice filled with outrage as he slammed a fist against the desk.

That was when Beck realized what Clint was implying. He suddenly wished this horrible nightmare would end right than and there. Zena had stayed in the background, her head bowed as she stared blankly ahead.

"I'm sorry," she suddenly whispered, earning looks of surprise from all of them. "Dyson visited the Archive at least three mylacycles ago. He already knew which User he wanted to test this modified code on… I tried convincing him that there was another way. That she has already suffered enough. But it wasn't enough for him. He wanted to see the looks on your faces when she betrayed you."

By now, Beck had lost all sense of reality as he realized what Zena meant. Dyson wanted them to see the looks on their faces when she betrayed them. He was suddenly aware of the fact that he was hyperventilating. Tron had to literally put Zena in a separate room before Natasha or Clint could unleash their fury upon her.

"None of this is her fault!" Tron snapped, pinning them both to the wall at the same time as they struggled against his firm grip. "Zena is not allowed to interfere with anything outside the Archive."

"But she could have stopped him within," Clint spat as he managed to wriggle free and throw in a good punch across the face. "And you should've seen this coming."

Natasha suddenly activated her stingers and threw them in Tron's direction, kicking him square in the chest as he blocked the first blow.

"This is exactly why SHIELD needed to keep an eye on the Grid." Beck's eyes widened in utter disbelief as Natasha was easily able to overpower Tron, who by now looked as if he was ready to give up. Even throughout the fight, his programming to fight for the Users had kicked in. "She doesn't trust anyone, and now she never will when this is over!"

Beck didn't even know what he should do. Natasha had a point, and so did Clint. He saw the look of utter hopelessness in Tron's eyes. A look that he was suddenly feeling as he realized that Natasha was right about Mira's lack of trust.

 _She's never going to forgive herself_ , he thought bitterly. The two Users had suddenly stopped their attacks and stood side-by-side. Beck ran over to Tron's side when he staggered back to his feet. He wouldn't fight against them even he could. Being programmed to fight for the Users meant that it went against everything he believed in, and Beck suddenly realized how vulnerable he looked for the first time in cycles.

"If there's any chance of saving her, then we need to take it."

Beck looked at Tron in surprise as he straightened up and said that. While he hardly looked as if he'd taken a beating, it was clear that this news had affected him. Unease swept through him at the thought. Zena's news left his mind reeling as he struggled to cope with the fact that Mira had likely been repurposed. If that was the case, then they needed to take action immediately. He of all programs knew just how dangerous she could be if she turned against them.

"You're right," Clint replied. "But we'll be doing that alone, without your help."

They turned to leave before anyone could stop them. Beck could only watch helplessly as he realized everything was falling apart. Whatever Sam Flynn had tried creating was only going to destroy itself. And it was all their fault.


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

"I'm so sorry." Zena's voice was full of despair as she buried her face in her hands. "I wish there was something I could have done to stop this."

Tron placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, which wasn't something he was accustomed to.

"Tron, is there really a way to break repurposing?" Beck asked.

By now he had stopped hyperventilating, but his mind was still on the fact that Dyson had his hands on Mira. If anything happened to her, he would never forgive himself. Not after everything she'd been through already. She had already suffered enough as it was without Dyson making a bigger mess out of her life. It was only thanks to talking with Natasha and Clint that Mira slowly but surely began recovering from what happened to her on the Grid. And sometimes even talking wasn't enough for her. There were still a few things she hadn't even told them that he knew about.

"Cutler was able to fight it, even if it was just for a few nanocycles," Tron replied. "It might work differently for Users."

Beck crossed his arms as he figured out what to do from here. Those Users had run off to save their daughter. Beck almost wished he could share their courage and rush off like that. But he knew how risky it was to go out in the open, especially if Dyson was successful in repurposing her. Their irrational thinking was going to get them hurt if they somehow managed to find her. If what Zena said was true, then finding Mira might be a mistake on their part.

 _She'd make a dangerous enemy_ , he thought sadly. Not only had Tron taught her how to fight, but she also picked up a few moves from the Real World as well. That made her a more formidable opponent than he liked to admit. More than once, she had beaten him in a sparring match in the simulation room. If she was capable of taking down even Tron, there was no telling what she would be capable of if she was repurposed to Dyson's liking.

"There is a way to break the code," Zena explained after wiping away a few tears. "From some of the data I heard, it would have to be someone who cares for the program who was repurposed… like to the point where they would be willing to die for that program, to free them."

For a moment, Beck thought that maybe she was lying when he realized it made sense. Cutler had almost broken free of his repurposing when Beck showed his face. It would have taken something much stronger for him to completely break free, but there was a possibility to shake it off. Hope suddenly swelled within him at the thought of finding some way to free Mira from Dyson's grasp. If what Zena said was true, then he knew that was what they would have to do.

"Then at least we have something to go with," Tron sighed, sounding a little relieved.

Zena looked in his direction as they headed for the stairs leading back to the Outlands.

"Tron, when you see Dyson, please do me a favor and kick his sorry ass for what he's done," she told him.

Tron was all too eager to go along with that idea, especially after everything Dyson had done to him. One way or another, Dyson was going to pay for this madness.

…

Shadow watched on in amusement as the remains of shattered programs crunched under her feet. Her mission to destroy Argon City was nothing short of a success story. She could already imagine the looks of horror that would follow when Tron and the 'Renegade' discovered what had happened.

Speaking of which, she hadn't even seen them anywhere in the city. She had searched every building, nook and cranny where they might be hiding. But of course, it was like they had vanished. With a sigh of frustration, she was about to put her disk back into place when the sound of an engine roared in the distance.

With a knowing smirk, she hopped onto the nearest roof of what was left of a building and waited. Nanocycles went by before the drivers had approached. Something about the drivers threw her off. Shadow frowned when she realized they weren't wearing normal program suits. Something about them was oddly familiar, though.

She shook it off as it was nothing more than a distant dream before making her move. These must be the Users that Dyson had warned her about. They looked like easy enough targets. Especially when she ran ahead, gracefully leaped into the air and twisted before landing to stand in front of them, her disk activated as she glared at them. The two Users hadn't even noticed her presence until now; they were arguing about something until realizing she was in their way.

"So, this must be one of those 'repurposed' soldiers they were talking about," the male User grumbled crossly. "We seriously don't have time for this."

 _Well, you won't have time for anything else when I'm finished with you_ , Shadow thought with a sly look. She suddenly threw her disk while the two were still trying to figure out what to do next. The male User was a little slower than the female, so she took him down first. Her attacks were lethal and quick; she made short work of him after pinning him to the ground in a matter of nanocycles.

"And I was so looking for a challenge," she sighed after knocking him out with her disk. That left her with one other User. Dyson had warned her that this User was formidable in battle, and could probably stand up to Tron in a fight if it came down to one. So, she went with a different tactic instead. "Your friend here is pretty weak," she sneered. "I doubt Dyson would want anything to do with him."

"Why are you working for him?" the female User demanded.

Shadow had to stop and think for a moment about that. Until that moment, she had never really questioned Dyson's motives. Dyson had told her that perfection was freedom. That Clu was needlessly killed, and he was continuing Clu's work. Her eyes narrowed when she realized what the User was attempting.

"Nice try, but that little trick isn't going to work on me," she chuckled with a shake of her head. "This city and Purgos were in desperate need of cleansing from imperfection. Now, we can rebuild and change the cities to our liking."

The User scowled before suddenly throwing out her legs. Shadow only rolled her eyes and leaped to avoid getting tripped. The User was fast; just like she had predicted. So, she used her speed against her. The soldier smirked as the User thought she had the upper-hand. Big mistake. Shadow unleashed a fury of attacks that left the User gasping for air as she struck at every opening she saw. Once she was finished toying with her, Shadow went for a less predictable move. One quick strike across the shoulder blade was enough to knock the female User out.

By now, Shadow was enjoying the rush of battle and was ready to deliver the final blow when she remembered Dyson's message. Letting out a sigh, she deactivated her disk and put it back in place, shooting a glare at the Users.

Still, there was no sign of Tron or the 'Renegade'. She was beginning to wonder if they had abandoned all hope after all. A small tug pulled at the corner of her lips. If that was the case, then Dyson had already won the war. She placed a tracer on one of the Users before slipping away into a cloud of smoke along with the rest of Dyson's army. Time to get away before anyone noticed.

…

Panic and fear was evident throughout the city. An evacuation had taken place just nanocycles earlier. Programs were helping one another get as far away from the area as they could. Without the warning Tron had given them, they might have met the same fate as Purgos. The good news was, everyone had taken precaution once it became clear what Dyson's intentions were. Beck was suddenly grateful that the task force had been quick to make sure everyone was safe and had found shelter from the destruction that followed.

"Why is this happening?" Beck demanded once only a few of Tron's team were remaining. "Why start now?"

Zena's words still haunted the back of his mind as he thought of any way to save Mira from Dyson's clutches. He just couldn't believe that she was capable of causing this kind of destruction. Then again, after everything she had gone through, there was a small part of him that wasn't too surprised. Dyson had repurposed Mira into what he believed was the right path, and that turned her into a dangerous enemy they needed to prepare themselves for.

"Dyson was waiting for the right opportunity," Tron replied. Beck glanced at him to see frustration evident on his features. "And he found an opening."

Before anyone had a chance to say anything, explosions shook the city. Paige held on to her light cycle as the ground below them began to tremble at the force. A cloud of smoke and flames erupted from what Beck guessed was Argon Square. Moments earlier the place was buzzing with activity. And now he had a feeling that it was a pile of cubes.

All they could do was watch as their city was torn apart. Even Tron could not scan the area for bombs planted throughout the city. Dyson had planned this well. Somehow, he knew that the city would already be on edge.

"What about the Users?" Mara asked when she, Zed and a few other programs had gathered to join them.

Beck hadn't even realized until now that Able must have taken the rest into HQ where they were safe.

"They ran off before these explosions hit the city," Tron explained icily.

Mention of Clint and Natasha put him on edge. Beck couldn't really blame him after the way they had treated him just microcycles ago. But, they were still Users, in the end, and it was their job to keep everyone, including Users, safe.

Beck was about to say something in their defense when he saw someone approaching them. His eyes widened in shock and horror when he recognized Able through the thick band of smoke that now covered the city. He was even more stunned to see that both Users had been knocked out, and Able was dragging his feet across just to reach them.

"What happened?" Beck asked after taking Natasha for him.

He was careful not to injure her any further, but it looked to him as if Clint had received the most injuries in this fight.

"I was searching the outskirts of the city for any signs of survivors," Able explained once both Users were gently placed on the ground. He let out an exhausted sigh and gazed off into the distance. "He went down easily, but she put up one heck of a fight against Dyson's soldier."

That caught Beck's attention. Dyson seemed to have hundreds of soldiers and black guard crawling around the area. But he could only think of one soldier that Zena had mentioned back in the Archive. He glanced at Tron uneasily, noticing the way he had stiffened during Able's explanation.

"Looks like they got more than they bargained for," Mara sighed after kneeling down to one knee.

She eyed Natasha thoughtfully when Paige took a step forward.

"I've seen this before," she explained, earning looks of surprise from everyone. "Look, I used to work at a hospital, and my primary code is to work as a medic. From what it looks like, the soldier hit their pressure points. It shouldn't take me long to help them recover."

Everyone watched her in amazement as she searched for their pressure points. A few quick jabs later and both Users were gasping for air. Clint's fist nearly collided with Paige when she leaped back, while Natasha simply sat up and rolled her eyes.

"What the hell just happened?" Clint muttered crossly.

"Do you want the good news, or bad news?" Zed asked nervously.

"You were taken down by one of Dyson's soldiers," Tron explained before either of them could answer. "We need to talk, alone."

Both of them exchanged wary looks. Beck let his shoulders sag in annoyance as he wondered if they would turn and run again.

Luckily, neither of them argued as they were led to Headquarters along with the rest of the programs. Tron had sent Paige and Mara to keep searching for any survivors. They were to report back the next cycle if they didn't find anything.

"Your actions have consequences," Tron said in an accusing tone once they were in alone in a room.

Beck stood nearby with his arms crossed. He really didn't want to see another fight break out, but he would defend Tron if these Users tried pulling off that stunt again. Back in the Archives, he'd felt helpless after realizing that Mira had been taken by Dyson, and was likely now working for him.

"Why aren't you taking this more seriously?" Clint demanded, his voice filled with rage as he glared daggers at Tron.

"Because he already knows a way to save her," Natasha suddenly replied for him.

"If you had stayed longer and _not_ threatened Zena, you would have known that there is a way to save her," Tron corrected her, earning a vengeful look. "It has to be someone close, someone who cares enough that it will break her."

Beck frowned and looked down at the floor when Tron had said that. Did he not realize how broken she already was? The last thing he wanted was to say that out loud. Especially with her parents right in front of him.

"So, security monitor, how exactly are we supposed to get anywhere near her?" Clint asked.

"We already faced her once," Natasha sighed as realization dawned on her. Clint looked at her in confusion as she narrowed her eyes. "Clint, it was obvious that was her we faced. Didn't you recognize those moves?"

Clint's eyebrows furrowed as he realized where Natasha was getting at. If it wasn't for the situation, Beck would have found his expression funny when he facepalmed. Mira really had gotten better if she was able to take these two down. Then again, she was able to hold her own in a sparring session against Tron.

"Dyson was recruiting scientists hilocycles ago," Tron went on after confirming that it was Mira who had taken them down. "I should have seen what he was planning, but I was going against my better judgements."

"You're damn right about that," Clint muttered under his breath, earning a death glare from Tron.

"Look, is there any way to stop Dyson before this gets any worse?" Natasha asked, ignoring Clint's remark and studying the security footage Tron had of Argon City.

"There is, but it's a risky move," Tron replied. "It would mean getting close to the enemy."

Natasha and Clint shared knowing looks, and Beck was suddenly left wondering what they had in mind. These Users were trained to go on missions like these, but so was he.

 _Dyson knows the Renegade would try and stop him_ , he reminded himself after thinking it through. They needed to be thorough and quick, and draw as little attention as possible.

"Already done." Tron raised an eyebrow in surprise when Natasha said that. "I put a tracer on one of the soldiers that was fleeing the city," she explained. "It shouldn't be that difficult to track down the base once I get a lock on his signal."

"Alright, but you'll have to be careful," Tron told her, a look of worry flashing in his eyes.

"I always am," Natasha replied with a look of determination. "If this means getting my hands around the neck of the program responsible for this, then the risk is worth it."

Beck had no doubt she would do that and more to Dyson. And a few xilacycles ago, he would have tried stopping her. But after what Dyson had done to everyone, there was no forgiving him this time. Dyson was going to pay for his actions, one way or another.

…

All was quiet in the base when Shadow returned. Dyson rose an eyebrow when her mask receded, revealing a scowl on her face as she approached him.

"You did well," he congratulated her. Though, truthfully, he was disappointed she hadn't returned with Tron or the 'Renegade'. At least she had returned after destroying Argon City. "I watched the surveillance footage of those Users you took down. It was quite the show."

"You didn't warn me about the female User," she muttered crossly as they headed down the extensive hallway. "She was stronger than I anticipated…"

Dyson stopped himself short when the soldier had paused.

His eyes narrowed in alarm when he saw recognition flicker in her eyes. A haunted look that reminded him of what repurposing could do to a program. She had been away from the chamber for too long, and her old memories were starting to return. With a sigh of frustration, Dyson did the only thing that seemed suitable at that time. He knocked her out cold and had her dragged back to the repurposing chamber.

It meant losing whatever speech ability she had gained over the previous cycles. But it bought him enough time to figure out how to lock away her memories permanently. Once she was placed back in the healing chamber and submitted, Dyson turned to one of the returning soldiers from the same mission.

"They took the bait, sir," the soldier announced, his voice full of pride.

"Excellent," Dyson replied with a triumphant smirk. Clu would truly be impressed with all that he had accomplished in a hilocycle. What he could not accomplish in xilacycles, Dyson had finished twice as fast. "So, I assume that they sent someone here… which means we'll need guards posted at every entrance. I don't want any User or Tron himself breaking in until we've found a way to lock her memories."

The soldier simply saluted in response before reporting to his comrades. Once he was gone, Dyson's smirk turned to a frown. He could see why Clu had enjoyed experimenting on this User for so long. If she had joined his army all those cycles ago, her mind would have been far lost than it was now. She was cynical, almost cruel and calculating when he had altered her mind to his liking. Letting out a sigh, Dyson supposed it was never meant to be. She would stay his perfect, speechless soldier, and the Users along with Tron would fall under her power.


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Once again, Natasha was thankful for the stealth suit that SHIELD had given her. It was one of their latest inventions, and surprisingly, it worked. This was the perfect opportunity to try it out as she crept along the entrance of the base. She had been keeping a close eye on the base for the last few minutes, observing the way soldiers and guards moved about. So far, she had noticed they were acting like mindless drones, and assumed this was one of the symptoms of 'repurposing'.

The base itself was located somewhere in the Outlands. Natasha wasn't too familiar with this desolate place, but then again, Mira had only just started showing them the basics of what life was like on the Grid before disappearing. It was cropped between two smaller cities and a vast wasteland. It was a wonder anyone had spotted it from a distance. The structure was immense. Dark red, orange and yellow lights seemed to radiate from it.

Natasha scowled at the sight. She understood why Mira and Beck hated those colors, now. When a SHIELD agent had returned from a mission with an orange suit, it left Mira a shivering mess. Beck was the one who had to explain what the colors on the Grid meant to them. It didn't take anyone long to figure out that orange and red weren't colors either of them preferred. Both had to work carefully around those color schemes once they figured out why Mira was so uneasy around them.

She waited behind a small boulder until a group of soldiers emerged from the base. While the door was still open wide, she wasted no time in getting in. No locked door had ever kept her out, but this was the safest way inside. It was likely that this Dyson character already knew she was there. The one good thing about wearing her stealth suit was that she managed to blend in with her surroundings while she was out on the field. Such occurrences came in handy, especially now when she was trying to avoid getting caught by the guards crawling around this base.

Once inside she made a point to avoid bumping into anyone. As far as they were concerned, they were the only ones in this building. Long corridors stretched before her, flanking out into yet more hallways and smaller rooms. Just how much space did one program need? She was familiar with the way several compounds worked, and with several SHIELD bases she'd visited in the past, and those were similar in design. Only this one was twice the size, which meant she had twice as much ground to cover.

Slowly but surely, she made her way through the hallways, occasionally peering into the rooms to see what was going on. This base was nothing like SHIELD's HQ or the Hellicarrier. But, the soldiers inside were prepping for what she assumed were future fights. Many of them already had received wounds, and piles of pixels covered the floor. Her eyes narrowed at the sight. The first time she had seen an injured program was a bit of a shock, but she had become accustomed to it. It was still strange to think that instead of bleeding like humans did, programs turned into a pile of pixels.

"It appears as though we have an intruder on the base," a voice suddenly announced over the com. "Take them down immediately and you will be greatly rewarded."

So much for stealth. Soldiers were racing down the halls once the announcement was made. Natasha wasted no time in knocking the first soldier out, startling the small group waiting behind him. Another soldier lunged forward with their disk activated. Dodging the disk with ease, Natasha kicked it out of his hand and sent him flying into another soldier, just before the last one standing struggled to take her down. She swung to the side and smacked him in the back of the helmet, knocking him to the floor in the process.

"Now before you lose consciousness, why don't you tell me where your boss is hiding?"

Natasha grabbed the soldier by the hem of his suit, pressing the knife she kept at her waste at all times against his neck. The soldier shuddered under her gaze as he struggled to find the right words. Panic swept across his gaze, and Natasha loosened her grip just a little when she realized that wasn't going to get her anywhere.

"I-I… I don't know!" he stammered. "We've never seen their face; we've only received messages and orders, I swear!"

He struggled to free himself, but Natasha only sighed in frustration. She tossed him aside carelessly, knocking him out in the process. If she allowed him to escape, she knew he would give an alarm and call for backup. The last thing she needed or felt like dealing with was more fighting.

So, this _wasn't_ Dyson's main base. But, maybe these soldiers could give her some kind of lead as to where he might be hiding. She continued making her way down the hallways, knocking out a few more soldiers in the process before reaching what appeared to be a suspicious room.

The door was sealed shut, meaning someone had meant to keep out any intruders. With one swift kick Natasha sent the door flying. What she saw next made her eyes widen in alarm. Scraps of files were scattered across the floor, along with desks that contained what she could only guess were the works of scientists, if the Grid had any.

"No, wait!"

Before she could get a look at the files a soldier was sent flying into the room. Upon sheer instinct she whipped around, only to find an eerily familiar face looking down at her. Or mask. The damage she had caused earlier had been repaired, but that 'R' symbol on the program's chest was still there.

"Who are you?" The words slipped out, and the program paused momentarily, tilting their head to one side.

The question was left unanswered. Natasha rolled to the side as the program threw a disk, followed by a second. The program was fast, using their speed to their advantage. She caught the program's raised fist with her feet, flipping them face first onto the floor. Biding her time, she jumped as the program used their hand to flip right back on their feet. Natasha blocked the next few strike patterns, knowing full well this program was going to wear down fast if they kept it up.

She swung her leg into the programs thigh, causing them to reel back in surprise at the sudden attack. Taking the opportunity, she had, she grabbed the files scattered along the floor and made a run for it. She wasn't going to risk spending more time in this place than she would have liked. Repurposed or not, even _she_ wasn't foolish enough to know that she couldn't take Mira down on her own.

…

The team had finally made up their mind. Splitting up was the best option they had in a situation like this. It was decided after a long argument with Zed, Link, Copper and Dash, that they would warn all of the cities throughout the Grid that were under Dyson's threat. Mara was biting the bottom of her lip as she made her way to Gallium. Compared to the other cities she had visited Gallium was fairly small. That would make her job a bit easier.

She reached the edge of Gallium in a matter of microcycles. Already, she could see programs were gathering near the outskirts of the city. The fact that communication had been cut off was probably why they were gathering. Without any means of reaching out to Tron or his team, they had no idea what was going on. She frowned at the thought. It would be the perfect setup if someone decided to strike this city next. Making sure that these programs were given a chance to escape their fate was the most important task on her mind at that moment.

 _I just hope they're willing to listen to me_ , she thought.

Her mind drifted back to when Able told her that she was a gifted leader. At the time, she hadn't thought much of it. But she knew that she wouldn't have been able to reach this point in her life had she not taken on the challenge of leading the entire garage.

"Everyone, I need your attention now!" Mara got off her light cycle, turning it back into a baton as programs turned to look at her. After the whole incident at the garage she had practiced her speaking skills, especially in public events such as this. "We need to evacuate the city. I want everyone heading for the bunkers without panic; we can't afford to wait."

"Where's Tron? Shouldn't _he_ be the one to tell us this news?" She narrowed her eyes at the program who spoke up. A tall male program with white and blue circuits stood out in the crowd, folding his arms as he glared at her. "He is after all, our supposed _protector_ ," he added in a sneer.

A few programs gathered around him began muttering to one another, sharing their own thoughts. Mara restrained the urge to punch him in the face. All he was doing was making things worse. She knew that a few programs were still resentful towards Tron for everything that had happened, along with Flynn himself. But, if they didn't evacuate now, they would be caught in the crossfire.

She wasn't about to let one stupid program's beliefs get in the way of others. If anything could be done to prevent them from getting hurt, she was going to take it in stride.

"Look, I don't know why Tron himself didn't come here to tell you, but I _do_ know that if you don't act now, things are going to get worse," she snapped after taking a deep breath to calm her growing temper. "Which is why I'm ordering everyone to get to the bunkers, and I want to make sure that all the buildings are cleared out. Everyone looks out for one another; that's how we handle things around here"

That seemed to alleviate any of the doubt these programs had. Mara's shoulders sagged with relief as the program that spoke out reluctantly nodded in agreement. She was thankful that Able had given her the opportunity to run things in the garage for a cycle. Without that opportunity, she would have never gotten this far. Then again, she had always felt more like a leader than a follower. Being able to help programs was something that she had always dreamed of doing, and joining the task force had given her that opportunity. She just needed the right push.

She led the programs to the bunkers, which was hidden within the Outlands. It was close to the city, but far enough away that they would not know what had happened. Once opening up the new safehouse that the Son of Flynn had created, she started helping those who were only just finding out. She wasn't going to rest until she knew for sure that everyone found a safe place to wait out the worst of the storm.

Mara glanced over her shoulder anxiously as she wondered how Zed and the others were handling the situation. She wished there was a way to keep in touch with them. Knowing that their lives were in danger hadn't helped alleviate her worries.

 _The others will need to take care of themselves_ , she silently reminded herself. _They know how to_.

"What exactly is going on? Communications are down and I can't reach anyone," a female program sighed as Mara led her away.

It was the second time someone had asked what was going on. And Mara was tempted with telling them the truth. But, something held her back. She had a feeling that telling them would only make them panic, and that was the last thing she needed right now. She was only just beginning to convince them to listen to her. If they started panicking now, it would only lead to disaster once they found out the reason behind their lack of communication throughout the Grid.

"Everything will be back up and running soon," she said reassuringly, hoping that what she said was true.

Argon City, the home she had pretty much lived in her entire life, was now gone. And while the shock had never really gone away, Mara struggled to cope with maintaining her composure around these programs. She needed to remain strong, for their sake. But still, she wondered how many other cities would be destroyed until whoever was doing this was stopped.

"Are you sure?" The program looked at her warily, eyes dark with worry.

"Positive." Mara patted the program's shoulder before stepping inside.

This safehouse was bigger looking than Mara expected. It was like an underground city with halls leading to different rooms that programs had to share. Sam had made it so that the safehouse would hold enough programs for every city. And he made it so that they had enough energy to last them for a few cycles.

Once everyone was situated, Mara made sure that there was no one left behind. The few programs left outside of their rooms were inside what was now the gathering hall. Here they could meet and discuss what actions would be needed for the future.

"Keep everyone inside," she told the program that had spoken up earlier. She was surprised to put so much faith in him, but something told her that he had dealt with this kind of situation before. Judging from the way he'd mentioned Tron, he had probably been around before or during the Betrayal. "Once communications are back up, you should be able to leave," she added.

"Let's just hope that what you're doing is the right thing," he grumbled.

Mara couldn't agree more with him. She truly hoped that this mess would be cleared up soon. If they could get communication back up, than Sam Flynn would be able to fix everything else. At least, that was the one thing she could assume.

…

By the time they were finished warning the cities, Natasha had returned from her mission. Beck was fumbling around with the codes on Tron's computer, trying to figure out if he could reach out to the User world. If there was any hope of reaching out to Sam or even SHIELD, maybe they could stop Dyson from the outside.

Though, that seemed like an impossible task the more he tried finding a failsafe in the code. He knew this was more of a distraction than anything else, but he was also aware of how important it was to keep in touch with the Real World.

"Nat, you okay?" Clint asked when the elevator door slid open, revealing an exhausted looking Natasha.

She let out a sigh before stepping off and glaring.

"Never better," she replied with a roll of her eyes. "Clint, you need to see this."

Beck narrowed his eyes at the seriousness in her tone. Something had clearly happened, and whatever that something was, it couldn't be good. Taking a deep breath, he tried distracting himself while the two Users spoke in low whispers.

He hated not knowing what to do in situations like this. Being the Renegade, he had always been so sure of himself because of Tron's guidance. But now with Dyson's return he felt useless. It wasn't like when General Tesler had taken over all those cycles ago. Everything was so different now.

"You mean to tell me that Dyson's been keeping files on everyone from SHIELD?"

Once again, Clint's voice rose to more than just worry. Now it was Beck's turn to look at them in disbelief. How would they know if Dyson was keeping track of SHIELD? It wasn't as if they would have been able to keep track of the former general in the first place. Dyson's ability to hack into anything had left him feeling worried about what else he might have been able to find.

His thoughts churned with anxiety as he recalled that Cyrus was being held in a highly secured prison by SHIELD. If Dyson managed to gain access to those files, there was no telling what sort of chaos would follow. He knew disaster would follow if Dyson was able to free Cyrus from his prison.

Then he noticed the files that Natasha was holding on to. Her expression was impossible to read. As someone who had mastered the art of hiding her emotions, he wasn't entirely surprised by that. But he had a feeling she was unhappy with the fact that she hadn't found anything that could lead to finding Mira, or Dyson himself.

"It seems that way," Natasha replied with a heavy sigh. "There was a message left from your wonderful former leader, Clu," she added to Beck, who was now watching them curiously.

That got his attention. When it came to dealing with Clu, Beck of all programs knew just how cynical he was. The ruthless former ruler had also been determined to put an end to anything that didn't fit in with his vision of 'perfection', something of which Dyson seemed determined to continue.

Carefully he made his way over to them, knowing full well that any wrong move would get him killed. After what Clint had nearly done to Tron, Beck wasn't taking any chances. Last thing he wanted was the wrath of these two on his shoulders.

So, he was more than surprised when he saw the message that Natasha had told him about. It was a message Clu had left for Dyson. One that he would follow until the end of his time. Which Beck was hoping would come soon.

' _Finish what I started_ '


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

The words sent shivers of fear and rage through Beck.

 _Finish what I started_.

Clu knew that he would be taken down, eventually. So, he must have known that he would still have loyal supporters out there. Beck had to wonder how Dyson had grown so powerful in such a short amount of time. Or maybe Dyson had this kind of power long before Clu was taken down. Either way, he wanted to end this now more than ever.

"So, we take down this Dyson character, and everything goes back to normal," Clint suggested.

Beck highly doubted things would ever be back to normal. With Mira under Dyson's control, there was no telling how she would act when she was finally freed. He could only imagine how it was going to feel, suffering from the effects of repurposing and struggling to recover from them. Tron never talked about it, and Beck could understand why – it couldn't be easy to see everything that had happened and have no control over it.

 _She's going to blame herself for everything that's happened_ , he thought bitterly.

Mira didn't deserve any of what happened to her in the first place. Programs had hated her for her very existence when Clu was in power. A few programs still believed in his ways, even after everything she had done for them. There was no telling how this would effect the others when they found out she was behind all of these recent attacks.

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy," Tron sighed as he too must have wished the same thing. "If Dyson really does have his hands on Mira, we're in bigger trouble than I'd like to admit. It's going to take all of us to take him down."

"Not to mention he'll have the place heavily guarded," Natasha put in knowingly. "Dyson's smart enough to know when to strike and when to hide."

Which wasn't entirely surprising. Considering Dyson had known when Beck was ready to set off those smoke bombs when he was visiting the city, he suspected Dyson would always keep one eye or ear opened.

He crossed his arms as he considered what they should do next. Finding Dyson wouldn't be easy. Finding Mira would be almost impossible with the modifications she had on her disk, and Beck couldn't shake off the feeling that Dyson had given her even more modifications.

"You know, as much as I hate to say it, security monitor over here's right," Clint sighed in annoyance. Beck only rolled his eyes at that. Saying that had to hurt. He was well aware of Clint's pride, which often got in the way of SHIELD's missions, from what Mira had told him. "We can't do this without working together, and so far, we haven't done anything useful."

"I'm in."

Beck tried not to smirk when Natasha pinched the bridge of her nose. If anyone could take down Dyson it was them. They were after all master assassins. This was what they were trained for. He wasn't one to derezz programs, but they would not hesitate.

If Dyson _had_ gathered intel on SHIELD, it would give these Users all the more reason to fight back. But, he had a feeling they were doing this for more than just SHIELD. They did care for Mira, much as either of them would try to deny it.

"I'm tired of sitting around doing nothing," Clint retorted. "Especially if there's a chance we can stop this Dyson once and for all, and save Mira."

Impatient as always. Once again, Beck had to remind himself that if Tron wasn't around they probably would have rushed off to fight by now. He was surprised they were able to follow Tron's orders at all at this point.

Then again, there was a time when he would have rushed off blindly into a fight if it meant protecting the people he cared about. He had been impatient himself back when he first became the Renegade. But that all changed thanks to Tron's training. He knew better than to go off without any experience, or without some kind of backup plan.

"We can't just jump blindly into battle, not when we don't know just how strong our enemy is," Tron muttered as if he'd read Beck's mind.

Though, Beck didn't miss the doubt in Tron's voice.

Beck couldn't shake off the feeling that Tron was blaming himself for what had happened to Mira. He was the one who had blamed himself for all of these cycles, and he couldn't help but wonder if things would ever get any better from here on. The real problem was, Mira was stronger than anyone Beck had ever faced in combat. True, Natasha could still beat her in a sparring session if she had the tactical advantage. But, hand-to-hand combat was a completely different story.

Clint looked like he was ready to argue when he thought better of it. Tron did have a good point. Though by now, they knew full well what Dyson was capable of. If he could repurpose a User, Beck had a feeling he was far more dangerous than anyone previously thought.

"The files I grabbed have locations on all of the bases he has," Natasha explained once the tension died down.

Tron raised an eyebrow as she tossed him the files she had picked up. Beck rose an eyebrow in surprise when he noticed the files in question Natasha pulled up. Most of them were scattered throughout the Grid, surrounding the Outlands.

 _Getting to them would be easier said than done_ , he frowned at the thought.

"If what you're saying is true, then Dyson could be anywhere," Tron sighed.

He sounded more exhausted than ever. Beck wondered if he had even gotten an ounce of sleep since Argon City was destroyed. It had been difficult to get much sleep since then. He was constantly wondering how anyone could let this happen. Fate worked in cruel ways, and Beck suspected this would have happened no matter how they tried changing its course.

"Or, he's giving us a false lead," Beck put in.

It was possible Dyson could only have a couple of bases, and make it seem like there were more scattered throughout the Grid. Anything to throw off intruders. But, those bases would also be crawling with soldiers who were willing to defend the bases with their lives.

"I should be able to pick out whether or not that's true," Tron told him once the computer screen was pulled out.

Even if communication was taken down, he could still access most of the files on the Grid. Beck watched with interest as he sifted through the files, careful to avoid spilling any secrets to the Users standing behind him. Keeping secrets from super spies was easier said than done, especially as far as Natasha was concerned.

Tron finally reached what looked like an archive of files. Tapping on a few codes here and there, his eyes narrowed with frustration.

"There's three bases?" Natasha's question broke the uneasy silence that filled the room.

"There's three _main_ bases," Tron corrected her. He glanced at the two Users. "This is going to be dangerous. Dyson likely already knows we're looking for him, and the bases will be heavily guarded," he explained. "We'll have to split up."

"Sounds easy enough," Clint replied with a shrug.

Easy? Beck raised an eyebrow at his confidence. He wished he could have a boost of confidence at this moment. Right now, the odds seemed to be against them. He knew that Mira would be there, fighting on Dyson's side until they could break whatever hold he had over her.

"Take this, you can use it to defend yourself." Tron tossed over a baton towards Natasha, who caught it with ease. She eyed the baton warily before activating it. "It's a light sword, and it should serve you well in battle," he explained.

Beck felt his chest tighten with pain at the sight. He really wished that he knew where Mira was. If anything had happened to her… he would never forgive himself. And seeing Natasha with a light sword reminded him all too well of her.

…

She ran a finger through her hair, nervous about what would happen next. The team had regrouped outside of what was left of Argon City. And while they were waiting for Copper's return, Mara was left thinking of which city would become the next target.

"Hey, Mara," Zed murmured as he joined her warily. Mara tried not to look wary around him. Despite how often she had turned him down back when Clu was ruling the Grid, Mara couldn't help but love the bitbrain. He just didn't know how to talk to her without making things awkward between them. "You okay?"

"Honestly, I'm worried," she admitted with a sigh. Zed raised an eyebrow in surprise. "I wish that Beck was around. He would've known what to do next in this kind of situation, even if he was the Renegade. We don't even know what happened to him."

Zed nodded in agreement at the thought of their old friend. Since the discovery that Beck was the Renegade, and that he had conspired with a User, everyone at Able's garage had stopped talking about him. Rumors had spread like wildfire that Beck ran off with that User, and the two had fled the system. Though, Zed had always pushed the rumors aside as they were.

He couldn't see Beck having a girlfriend. At least not anymore than he could see himself with Mara.

Yet, he recalled the girl Beck had been with back when the curfew had been lifted. The girl hadn't said much during her time with them, and Zed had always felt a little nervous around her in their short time together. Then Beck finally admitted that the same girl who was with him had been the User who sacrificed herself so that the three of them could escape Clu's clutches.

The more he thought about it, the more he began to realize just how wrong he was. It was clear that Beck had always cared about that User. While he never admitted it out loud, Zed saw it the moment he mentioned he was going to Tron City to rescue her.

"You don't think he was derezzed, do you?"

The question made Mara flinch on instinct. She hated the word 'derezzed'. After watching so many programs suffer for so many cycles, Zed didn't blame her for hating it. And the more he thought about it, the more he realized that talking about Beck being derezzed was the last thing he wanted or needed.

"No, I refuse to believe that he was," she retorted. "I mean, Beck was the _Renegade_! There's no way he would let himself get derezzed."

Able chose that moment to join in, raising an eyebrow when he heard what his employees were talking about.

"Mara, Zed, there are things about Beck that you would never understand," he sighed, referring to the fact that Beck had protected the User they were talking about.

"But, Able, what about that User he was with?" Zed asked this time, his eyebrows furrowing as he remembered seeing the girl Beck was with all those cycles ago. "I mean, she's probably the one who influenced him to fight back in the first place."

The old mechanic let out a sigh and pulled up a seat, gesturing for the two of them to join him.

"What I'm about to tell you, is something I'd hoped to never share," he explained warily. "Before I do, you need to promise me you won't tell anyone about this."

"You can trust us, Able," Mara replied in a firm voice.

Zed also chimed in about being more than trustworthy.

"The User that was with Beck isn't like any other User I've ever seen," Able explained. "I've met Flynn once, and that was through chance… she was nothing like him. Her behavior and attitude threw me off at first, but Beck finally explained to me why she acted that way."

Mara and Zed stared at Able in appalled horror as he retold the story of how Mira had become who she was over the xilacycles. It was Beck who told him her story after everything was said and done. By the time Able was finished talking, Zed looked as if he was going to be sick.

Guilt suddenly swept through him as he recalled how many times he'd cursed Users for the rotten luck he used to suffer from. He could already picture the girl that had been with Beck all those cycles ago. She hadn't seemed cold and distant towards them. But it was clear from the way she looked at them that she had been through some kind of trauma.

"I… I knew that Clu was cruel, but I didn't think he was that cruel," he sighed once Able had let this story sink in. "And all this time, Beck was protecting her."

Mara frowned when she realized where Zed was going with this.

"He was protecting her from _us_!" she gasped in disbelief. Zed looked at her in confusion. "Think about it, Zed. You wouldn't have hesitated to turn her in the microcycle you found out she was a User. I'm sure I wouldn't have either!"

Mara couldn't help but feel guilty as she realized why the girl Beck was with had seemed so cold and distant towards them. Her fear and lack of trust was more than understandable. But, the more she thought about it, the more she wondered why Able would only tell them this now.

The odds of Able telling them now were slim. She couldn't shake off the feeling that he wouldn't have told them in the first place if none of this had happened.

 _Not that I don't blame him after what she went through_ , she thought bitterly.

She suddenly wished that she could take everything she said about the User back. There was a time when she admitted that Users didn't belong on the Grid. But, if it wasn't for Users, the Grid wouldn't even exist.

"That girl has something to do with these attacks, doesn't she?" Zed asked if he had read her mind.

Once again, Able sighed and confirmed their suspicions with a reluctant nod.

"Not on purpose, I'm sure," he told them before they could jump to conclusions. "Mira is… a complicated User. One who if in the wrong hands could easily destroy the Grid, if given the chance."

"Able, Copper went missing when we sent out patrols to warn the other cities," Mara sighed after realizing he was probably right. She couldn't help but wonder if things had worked out differently, had they known about this earlier. "He should have come back, but…"

She paused and let this sink in, Able's eyes widening in alarm.

"All we can do now is hope that Tron gets his act together," he said. "And we can only hope that those two Users with him know what they're getting themselves into."

Mara bit the bottom of her lip after realizing that Able was right. She knew that Copper was capable of getting himself out of this mess. The Users that were with Tron… she had a feeling that they were on the programs' side, despite everyone's earlier presumptions. Right now, hope was all they had. And that was all Mara could do at this point.


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

The plan was supposed to be simple. Tron had explained to Beck and the others that there were three bases spread throughout the Outlands. More than likely, Dyson had the bases heavily guarded with repurposed soldiers. Stealth was something Beck had become a pro with over the xilacycles of training with Tron, and, he silently thanked himself for keeping those qualities.

He'd taken the base that was located between Purgos and Argon City. Tron and Clint took the base that was farthest out, close to Gallium. Natasha had taken the base that was located near Bismuth, just on the outskirts of the city.

Worry clouded Beck's thoughts as he rode his light cycle across the Outlands.

He couldn't shake off the sense of dread when it came to thinking of Mira. She had already suffered from so much. To know that Dyson had captured her, and repurposed her, only left him feeling that much worse. He should have been there, for her. He should have done something, to prevent this from happening. Anything was better than facing the harsh reality that he now had to face.

There was no telling what Mira would be like, when this was over. He'd tried asking Tron, before they parted ways, what to look out for. The security program's face had only darkened, though, at the question. Instead of answering, Tron had ignored him and joined Clint before they got ready to leave.

Beck shook his head at the thought, knowing that he needed to focus on the task at hand. He wasn't surprised to find that the base was hidden underground. Dyson went to such measures to keep programs like himself or Tron from finding it. But, that hadn't stopped Beck from spotting something that stood out among the dust, snow, and debris that scattered across the Outlands.

He pulled to a stop, turning his light cycle back into a baton when he spotted the soldiers emerging from what looked like an entryway. Narrowing his eyes at the sight, Beck carefully moved forward until he was close enough to hear what the soldier was saying to his companion as he crawled out.

"I don't like this," the soldier muttered under his breath, "Dyson's been hanging over that new soldier of his like a shadow. All he ever seems to do is spend time with her."

"From what I gathered, that soldier of his isn't even a program," the second soldier put in, shaking his head in disbelief, "A User doesn't belong in our ranks, let alone one like _that_ User."

Swallowing hard, Beck could only imagine just what Dyson's intentions were for Mira. He knew the former general wanted to use her to get to them. That alone sent shivers of rage through Beck. He wanted nothing more than to free her from Dyson, to reassure her that everything would be okay. She had already suffered enough as it was without Dyson's presence making things worse. He doubted she would recover from this incident anytime soon.

He tried casting the uneasy thoughts aside before putting on a disguise similar to what the guards were wearing. If he wanted to get close to the enemy, it would mean disguising himself as one of them. Once that was finished, Beck finally stepped out of his hiding place and took a deep breath, hoping these guards wouldn't see through his disguise. The unease suddenly came rushing back when he thought of what would happen if they caught him. He had to make himself look convincing, so he tried to look confident as he reached them.

"What are you doing out here, program?" the first soldier demanded after noticing him.

"I was uh… transferred from the base in Gallium to help with the security measures around here," he tried explaining, wincing at his own excuse. "The general explained to me that he wanted more soldiers posted around here after the last break-in."

The soldier narrowed his eyes, and was ready to say something else when a commotion distracted them. Beck turned, eyes widening in horror and recognition when he spotted a group of soldiers pushing a familiar looking mechanic towards the base. While he and Copper never really got along that well, he wasn't expecting to see his former coworker being dragged against his will to one of Dyson's bases.

 _We might not have gotten along, but he doesn't deserve to be captured and held prisoner_ , he reminded himself.

"This program was caught by Shadow," the soldier in the front of the group said, shoving a cuff-bound Copper to the ground. Copper only scowled in disgust the rest of the soldiers surrounded him. It took everything Beck had not to jump in and fight back – he had his orders, and, needed to play his part, "Take him to the repurposing chamber; we'll make a fine soldier out of him, yet."

It took a few nanocycles for Beck to register that the soldier was looking at _him_. Once again, Beck fumbled to find the right answer, knowing full-well he could be derezzed right then and there if he didn't.

"Right…" He paused, frowning as he looked desperately at the first soldier who'd spoken.

"He's new around here; just got transferred from Gallium," the soldier said helpfully, much to Beck's surprise. His shoulders sagged in relief when he realized that maybe at least some of these soldiers had enough sense to help out. "I'll show you the way; Dyson has repurposing chambers at all the bases, but this is the one that malfunctions the least."

 _Malfunctions_? The thought sent a shiver of unease through Beck as the soldier grabbed hold of Copper before he could make a run for it. Beck couldn't even imagine what that would have looked like. Repurposing itself was a crude, archaic way of mending the mind of any program. Beck knew from the way Tron acted that it left little of their old personality intact. Shaking his head at the thought, Beck followed the first soldier without another word, relieved that he was actually sticking up for him.

"Thanks," he muttered under his breath once they were inside.

Beck narrowed his eyes when he noticed that this was an extensive network of tunnels. To his right was a room that had a machine hovering on the ceiling. He could only assume that was the repurposing chamber those soldiers had been talking about.

He couldn't help but look away guiltily as he realized that was likely the same machine used to repurpose Mira. If Dyson was capable of repurposing her of all Users, there was no telling what he could do to everyone else.

"I wouldn't take what they say, personally," the soldier brushed it off with a shrug, "Most of them aren't happy with the way Dyson is running things. Ever since he brought in that User, things have changed."

"What do you know about that User?" he asked curiously, ignoring the scowl Copper was giving them when he realized who they were talking about.

He knew he was pushing his luck by asking questions about Dyson's top 'soldier'. But if he wanted to gather more intel on where Mira could be, this was the only way. Besides, it wasn't as if Copper or the other mechanics at the garage had ever cared about Mira.

"Only that she was captured by Clu, xilacycles ago," the soldier replied. "What Clu did to her… was unforgivable, in the eyes of most programs. Like the rest of us, he turned her into his perfect weapon." He paused to let this information sink in. Beck narrowed his eyes in surprise as he realized that the soldier hadn't shown any signs of being repurposed himself. Instead, he sounded as if he was full of resentment towards Dyson for what was happening. "Not all of us agree with Dyson or Clu… but it isn't as if we're allowed to say anything out loud. Anyone who opposes the general learns the hard way that they'd get derezzed."

Not for the first time, Beck's fists clenched at the mention of what Clu had done to Mira. While she never went into full detail of the amount of torture she had endured while she was his captive, Beck had seen enough of her memories to know. Anyone who went through something like that, especially someone like Mira, didn't normally recover so quickly. He was surprised that she managed to recover as well as she had the first time they met.

Though what really surprised him was the fact that the soldier mentioned how uneasy some of the other soldiers were around Dyson and his new 'toy'. Beck frowned as he thought of ways to convince said soldiers into fighting against Dyson. Maybe they didn't have to do this alone. Maybe there was a way of rallying the crowd into fighting back.

Relief swept through Beck when the soldier left him to finish the job. The base itself wasn't as heavily guarded on the inside as he expected. Which gave him the perfect opportunity to free Copper before they suspected something was wrong. When he mentioned that Dyson wanted to increase security around the place, he hadn't been kidding. Though, the lack of security worked in his favor.

Copper just eyed him warily as he looked up at his former coworker.

"If you're here to derezz me—" Beck cut him off with a shake of his head.

"Calm down, Copper, it's me."

The mechanic's eyes widened when Beck turned off his voice disguise. He pulled out the decoder, knowing that in this case, it was necessary – this wouldn't be the first time the tool had saved his life or those of his friends – and he took off the cuffs once Copper realized he wasn't a threat.

"Beck, I… how?" Copper was at a loss for words as he searched for answers.

"Look, you have every right to hate me for what I did. Right now, we need to get you out of here," Beck told him.

Copper just nodded, still at a loss for words. Beck turned his voice disguise back on, careful to make it look like he was leading Copper away to a cell. If they even had those on this base. Beck still hadn't gotten a good look at the place. He hoped that wouldn't backfire on him.

They made their way down the winding hallway, passing a few soldiers along the way. No one bothered asking what Beck was doing with the captured program. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. He knew that everything could go downhill quickly if they didn't move faster. He was relieved that Copper hadn't sustained injuries along the way to the base. The only thing that would effect a good escape was his lack of energy, though Beck planned on buying him as much time as he could.

"That soldier who was talking about the User… she was with you, wasn't she?" Copper asked warily as he looked at Beck.

Beck suddenly grabbed Copper by the wrist and started to run. At this rate, the soldiers would be on them in nanocycles, if they weren't already. He was surprised this place wasn't more heavily guarded. From what he'd gathered, Dyson had been prepared for just about everything, including them.

"Run now, talk later!" he ordered while running.

He didn't stop running until they reached a corner in the hallway. The door loomed ahead, and Beck tried not to groan when he realized that it was heavily guarded. Well, so much for that hope.

A lump formed in the back of Beck's throat when he thought of what the soldier had said, "Yeah, that User was with me," he sighed heavily.

Copper's eyes widened in disbelief when he realized what that meant. None of this was her fault. She wouldn't have done this if she knew what was happening. Though, in truth, Beck was beginning to wonder how true that was.

"But, why is she doing all of this? Is what Clu said about Users true?" Copper's question was one that made Beck cringe visibly. "She was there when I was captured… she laughed, and she acted like it was some sick, twisted game."

"Look," Beck started, squeezing his eyes shut as he tried to reason with the mechanic, "I know who she is… she's been through more than any of us can imagine. She's never going to forgive herself when this is over. Programs are already going to blame her for what happened."

His words finally seemed to leave Copper realizing where he was getting at, with that notion.

"Why would anyone want to repurpose a User?" he asked, voice dropping to a whisper when he understood that this wasn't something she normally did.

"Because, Dyson knows how much Tron cared about her," Beck replied, feeling the lump in his throat return. He didn't want to admit out loud that he cared about Mira, himself. Not with so much at stake, "Taking her, and turning her against Tron, would mean he's lost everything he tried fighting for."

That wasn't even half the problem. Beck already pictured how angry Natasha and Clint had been when they found out what had happened. To make matters worse, Beck had a feeling that the Real World wouldn't take kindly to the way Users were treated, on the Grid.

"You need to get out of here," he added, the urgency in his tone catching Copper by surprise.

"Beck, I wanna stay and fight with you," Copper insisted, eyes narrowing slightly as Beck let out a sigh of frustration.

"I can't afford to lose another friend," Beck snapped, ignoring the look Copper gave him, "Copper, you need to go back to Argon and regroup with the others."

He was afraid Copper would try and argue with his logic. Mara, Zed and the others would worry about Copper and try looking for him. Truthfully, Beck knew he would never forgive himself if anything happened to them. He'd already lost enough this cycle.

"What about you?" Copper asked when he guessed what Beck was planning.

"I need to stay here," he explained warily, "I'm not going to let Dyson get away with this. Not if there's a way to save Mira."

To his relief, Copper didn't argue with that logic. He seemed to understand that this was more than personal.

"Hey, Beck?" he added before leaving. Beck turned and looked at Copper, who refused to meet his questioning gaze, "I'm sorry, for all things Dash and I used to say."

Beck couldn't hide the look of surprise that followed. He wasn't expecting that kind of apology, especially after everything that had happened. Instead of answering right away, he knocked out the first couple of soldiers who were guarding the exit. He was grateful that the fellow mechanic hadn't made a big scene at the base. If he managed to survive this, he knew he would have to confront the others sooner or later.

"Thank you, Copper," he replied once the exit was clear, "Stay safe."

Giving his old coworker a nod, Copper made a run for it before an alarm could be called. Beck could only watch on, wondering if that was the last time he would see Copper. He decided it was best not to think of it. Right now, he had a mission to focus on. And, he planned on finding Dyson to put an end to what he'd done.


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

The bunker was bustling with activity. Programs ran to and from their destinations to get things set up for whatever was needed the next cycle. A few had been sent to medical facilities after receiving numerous injuries during the evacuation process, and the explosions. Paige had been working overtime to make sure everyone received proper medical treatment. A combination of exhaustion, confusion and guilt swept through the medic as she reached the ragtag group that consisted mostly of mechanics.

Paige hadn't missed how subdued everyone looked when she joined them. After finding out one of their fellow coworkers were missing, she had no doubt they were wondering what fate fell upon him. She herself wondered what had happened to Beck, Tron, and those two Users that were with them.

They left to find the User that had caused so much trouble from the beginning. Now, that same User was causing destruction wherever she went. While Paige knew it wasn't entirely her fault, she blamed her for all the mishaps that happened throughout the Grid.

She shook her head at the thought. The User was so different from everyone else. Paige knew it wasn't fair to blame the User for everything that happened. She just wished that things would go back to normal.

It wasn't until looking up that Paige noticed a newcomer arriving in the bunker. She narrowed her eyes upon seeing Copper approach them with a slight limp. He didn't look as if he'd been hurt too badly. Yet, that didn't stop Paige from making a mental note to make sure he received medical attention as his friends crowded him.

"Copper, what happened to you?" Dash demanded as he reached his friend.

Copper looked like he was low on energy. Paige knew from the dull appearance of his circuits that it had been quite a while since he'd last had energy. Knowing that much, she went over to the energy reserves they had stored in the bunker, and filled a glass before returning.

"I ran into a problem while evacuating the city," Copper explained, looking relieved when Paige handed him a glass of energy. "I'm lucky I made it out alive, though."

He grimaced as he sat down on one of the chairs. Upon closer inspection, Paige could see that he'd received numerous hits on the chest, shoulder and leg. He really was lucky to be alive; anyone within range of that explosion had been derezzed.

"How did you manage to escape?" Mara asked as everyone gathered around him, listening with renewed interest.

He fell silent, and for a moment, Paige wondered if he ran into the User that had been causing so many problems. She swallowed, hard. Users were never meant to live on the Grid. She knew she felt resentful towards the User known as Mira for helping her. Though, she had more reasons to feel that way. Mira had caused enough problems to make her wonder if Clu had been right about them, after all.

"Well, it wasn't easy," Copper shook his head as he tried to recall everything that happened, "I was ambushed on my way back to the bunker by a bunch of soldiers. One of them had a disguise on, though. She moved so fast that I barely had time to react."

"You said 'she'," Paige pointed out, ignoring the looks Mara and Zed exchanged.

Obviously, they knew who she was referring to.

"Yeah… I uh, managed to fight back enough to know something was up with her," he explained, suddenly looking uneasy, "She's the User that Tron was talking about. I think, she was the same User that Clu was looking for all those xilacycles ago."

A shiver ran through Paige when she realized what he meant by that. She remembered those cycles, chasing down programs and leaving marks just to see if they bled. She remembered the User giving herself up, willingly, when Beck and his friends were used as bait. Most importantly, she remembered what Clu had done to Mira. That User had suffered more than anyone Paige knew.

"We had a feeling she might be behind this," Mara admitted, chewing the bottom of her lip thoughtfully. "None of this was her fault, though."

Paige looked at Mara in surprise. Then, she realized that the mechanic was right. As much as she hated to admit it, none of this was Mira's fault. She had likely been repurposed by Dyson. To be turned into something she was not; Paige couldn't imagine a worse fate.

"There was… someone else, in the base where I managed to escape," Copper suddenly added, earning looks of surprise from everyone.

"Did you manage to get his name?" Link asked hesitantly.

There was a moments pause. Paige thought she saw something flash within Copper's eyes, as if he was trying to keep what he'd discovered a secret. It was too late, though. He'd already blurted out something that he clearly wanted to keep to himself, and now, everyone expected an answer.

"His name was… Beck," he replied, his voice strangely quiet as he refused to look up.

Silence followed. Paige watched as everyone's expressions changed from curious to shocked in a matter of nanocycles. Beck had kept his face hidden from his coworkers for a reason. She always thought he needed time to get over the fact that they knew he was the Renegade. Now, she realized the real reason behind him keeping his face a secret.

"Copper, are you sure?" Zed asked, leaning forward with a new sense of urgency.

"Yeah," Copper replied, his laugh bitter as he shook his head, "He rescued me from being repurposed, and stayed behind to find the User that they repurposed. I'm guessing he wasn't expecting to see me, either."

"This is huge!" Mara exclaimed, ignoring the fact that Copper had also mentioned Beck's urgency to rescue Mira from Dyson's clutches, "If Beck's alive, then, that means the Renegade is still alive, too! And, that means he really _is_ the Renegade!"

"Guys, calm down," Paige cut in, knowing that this could escalate to something that Beck had been avoiding for so long, "Look, I get the feeling Beck kept his identity a secret for a reason. Besides, he has enough to worry about as it is."

Mara's eyes darkened as she understood the gravity of the situation. Beck cared about Mira. So much so, that he was willing to risk revealing his identity to these programs. Paige hadn't missed the subtle exchange Mara gave Zed, who seemed to nod in agreement.

"That User he mentioned, is probably the same one Able talked about," she heard Zed whisper under his breath, low enough that only Mara and anyone close enough could hear.

Whatever happened, Paige hoped that Beck and Tron pulled through on their plans to rescue Mira. She knew for a fact that the User would make a dangerous enemy, if in the wrong hands. That cold realization made her wish that she had been more cautious around Clu from the very beginning. Maybe, she could have put an end to his cruel treatment towards Mira, and, avoided this, all together.

…

"You call _this_ simple?"

Tron rolled his eyes as Clint asked the question for what felt like the hundredth time.

He wondered how Users could get this annoying. It was a wonder that Mira could put up with them at all. In ways, she was just like Natasha. Cold, calculating and she didn't trust that many programs or Users. But, in other ways, she was like Clint, who constantly took risks and got himself into more trouble than was necessary.

"It's simple enough," Tron replied. "Got your target?"

Clint's only response was a fire of an arrow, landing straight into the path of a group of soldiers.

The base was heavily guarded, not that that surprised Tron. Dyson likely already knew he would strike back. What bothered Tron more than anything was that Dyson had captured Mira, and turned her against them. The guilt that was slowly eating at him had grown stronger than ever, the more he thought about it. He couldn't even find the logic to fight back against Natasha or Clint when they attacked without remorse. Now, he had to live with that guilt, and knew that even if Mira did survive this, she would never be the same.

He didn't get the chance to think it over. Their window of opportunity was closing. The two of them made a run for it as the soldiers were still recovering from the explosion. He had to admit that Clint was good with his aim.

Once they were inside more soldiers waited for them. This had to be Dyson's base. If his speculations were right than the program he had grown to hate more than anything else was waiting for them. Almost at once Tron felt his fists tighten at the thought.

"Cover your ears," Clint suddenly ordered while pulling out another arrow.

Tron eyed him suspiciously before performing the task.

Once the arrow was fired, the soldiers stopped in their tracks, looking at one another in confusion. That was when shockwaves surged through the hallway. For once, Tron was thankful he had covered his ears. The soldiers stumbled to the floor, unable to move.

"What was that?"

Judging by the smirk Clint was wearing, he had known this would happen.

"Repulsor arrow," he replied.

Tron raised an eyebrow, slightly impressed with the technology used. Users never ceased to amaze him.

The two of them ran down the halls once they were cleared out. Any soldier close enough would've been knocked out by the signal. Unfortunately, that was the easy part of their task. Now they had to figure out which room Dyson was hiding in. And that wasn't all they had to worry about.

"So, what now?"

Several doors now loomed before them. Each one of them could lead to another hallway, or a room full of soldiers.

"This is usually why I bring Beck," Tron grumbled.

If they had come as a team than this might have been an easier task. But, now, they would have to be careful.

In the end, they chose the door closest to them. What they saw next was something unexpected.

A room made up entirely of scientists. All of them performing various tasks such as research or looking at different models on screens. One of the scientists had finally noticed their arrival. But, they made no move to attack.

"Okay, what's going on here?"

Tron grabbed the scientist closest to him and pinned her to the wall, raising a disk against her throat. The scientist didn't even struggle. Her eyes were wide with panic, but, she made no attempts at fighting back.

"If we knew we would tell you," she said in a rushed voice. "Dyson had us locked up in here, working on new 'ideas' for him for the past xilacycle."

Clint raised an eyebrow at the term she just used. Users weren't familiar with how time worked on the Grid. Which was probably a good thing.

"So, you truly have no idea why you're here?"

Tron pressed his disk against the scientist's neck. Now, she was beginning to struggle. The other scientists had gotten up, realizing that their lives could be in danger. Though, given the circumstances of their situation, they were already in danger before the intruders arrived.

"No!"

The scientist braced herself as Tron dropped her.

"Then, get out, before Dyson finds out," he snapped.

The scientists gathered around them hesitated for a moment, afraid that he might be lying. Tron just folded his arms and waited for the realization that they were free to sink in. And in a matter of nanocycles all of the scientists made a run for it.

"Think she was telling the truth?" Clint looked at the screens curiously once they were alone.

"She was. Their energy levels were dangerously low," Tron explained. "Dyson must have set the place up as a prison for them, to have them create new weapons and methods of torture."

Each word came out as though he was grinding his teeth.

The more he learned about Dyson, the more he hated the program. Now, he wished he had derezzed Dyson when he had the chance. It was only thanks to Beck that he had reluctantly stopped himself from doing so.

He started sifting through the images on the screens, hoping to have some kind of clue as to where Dyson was hiding. These scientists didn't know the proper code to find their way out. Luckily, it was easy hacking into the system.

"There he is." Tron memorized the room as soon as he reached the location.

"Along with Mira," Clint growled after looking at the image.

Tron shot him a warning look. If he rushed blindly into this fight, she wouldn't hesitate to take either of them down. Especially if Dyson had repurposed her to his liking. It took everything Tron had not to blame himself or smash the security screens out of pure rage.

"Let's get this done and over with," Tron muttered.

* * *

 **AN: I apologize for taking so long in updating. I'm still working on the last couple of chapters for this story, and I want to finish them before the end of the year. Thank you, Retrokill for reviewing! I really do appreciate receiving reviews and responding to them :)**

 **Retrokill - Thanks! Yeah, it was a rather short scene, but, they'll have plenty of time to make up for it, in the end. At least, that's my hope XD**


	10. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

By now, Beck was getting used to creeping along the extensive network of underground tunnels. Users, how many tunnels did one general need? The question that left Beck shaking his head in annoyance would never be answered. So he avoided any soldiers blocking the way and took different twists and turns.

That was pretty much how he spent the next few pectrocycles. Just wandering aimlessly through the halls trying to find where Dyson was hiding. It was a boring job. But he needed to keep up his work if he wanted to get anywhere. He had been lucky that none of the other soldiers or guards wandering through the same halls hadn't stopped to question him. A few looked at him as if he was a newcomer, giving out random directions every now and then. Otherwise, it was relatively empty and strangely lonely.

What he wouldn't give to have someone to chat with. At least when Mira was with him, she'd always have something to say. Now that he was alone, he realized just how much he missed her. And not just because she had kept him company during missions.

He paused when he reached what looked like a dead end. The tunnel was winding towards the left. It made him wonder if these tunnels were all connected to the three bases that Dyson had kept in operation. If that was the case, then finding Dyson would be easier than he'd originally thought.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoing caught his attention. Beck reached for his disk, growing tired of knocking out soldier after soldier. The sound was getting closer as he got further down the tunnel. Without warning, he threw his disk, only to have it blocked by a light sword. In a matter of nanocycles, the enemy had him pinned to the floor, sword aimed for his neck as he struggled to free himself. His mask receded when he recognized his attacker.

"Natasha?" The red-head suddenly released her grip on the light sword, looking more amused than anything else. "How did you…" He cut himself off, already knowing the answer.

"These tunnels are all connected," she replied.

It explained how the black guards were able to get around without anyone tracking them down. It also explained how no one was able to detect Dyson without him showing his sorry face. Annoyance swept through him as he thought of the many times they'd found programs that went missing throughout the last few cycles. Dyson's plan had been successful, and he would have continued getting away with it had he not taken his plan a step too far.

"Wait, how many times have you been through here?"

He was surprised when she helped him up. Considering how aggressive she could be at times, he was half-expecting her to leave him and continue on her way. Not for the first time, Beck found himself realizing just how similar Natasha and Mira were behavior-wise. Neither of them were willing to admit it out loud, though, and he couldn't necessarily blame them for that.

"Enough times to know that Dyson is here, waiting for us," she explained. "He has guards posted in one central room. Clint and Tron are closer to it than they realize."

Okay, that was pretty impressive. He always kept forgetting how much more experienced Natasha was with these situations. He was suddenly grateful that they'd run into each other, otherwise he would have been crawling around the base longer than he would have liked.

"So, we take out the guards, and then, Dyson," he suggested as they started making their way through the tunnels once more.

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy," Natasha pointed out. "From what I've gathered, those soldiers are there to give Dyson an alarm. If anyone manages to reach that room, he will know, if he doesn't already."

Beck pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. So much for this being simple. If what she said was true, then Dyson probably had some sort of backup plan. He was determined to make Clu's dream of a 'perfect system' come true. And that thought alone sent a shiver of worry through him. He knew once they put an end to Dyson's plans, they would need to be on the lookout for other contingency plans. He had no doubt that Clu had more scattered throughout the Grid.

So, the two of them made their way carefully towards the room Natasha had mentioned. Only to find that the soldiers had already been taken down. Beck raised an eyebrow curiously when he saw that the door to the room was already opened.

Natasha was the first to venture forward, boldly making her way into the room where Dyson was hiding. Or as Beck would soon find out, simply seated at what looked like a throne with the soldier from Purgos standing beside him. He couldn't help but glance at the soldier warily as he noticed something oddly familiar about their stance.

"The Renegade and infamous Black Widow… I was wondering when you two would show up, seeing as your friends have already tried taking me down."

The grin Dyson wore made Beck wish he could tackle the corrupted program off that throne. But, seeing as they were evenly matched, he knew better. He already had a feeling that Dyson had outsmarted them once again.

"Wait, what do you mean—" Dyson cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"Your wonderful mentor, Tron, was easy to take down. As for the other _User_ that was with him, well, you can see how that ended," Dyson replied with another low chuckle.

Before he had a chance to say anything else, Natasha lunged forward. She moved faster than Beck could think, pinning Dyson against the chair with the light sword Tron had given pressed at his neck. He almost winced at the sudden impact of her attack. Even Dyson didn't have the quick reflexes the master assassin had.

"Where is Mira?"

Beck's eyes widened at the question. He hadn't even thought of asking that, and suddenly that familiar pain in his chest returned. Dyson's grin only grew wider, to the point of creeping Beck out. How much worse could this nutcase get?

"Right beside you, actually," he replied with a wide grin. Faster than either of them could react, the light sword was suddenly kicked out of her grasp. Beck's eyes widened with horror as the soldier suddenly grabbed hold of Natasha's wrists and twisted them behind her back, slamming her hard against the wall. "I can see why Clu took so much interest in her. The enhancements he gave her have served me well."

For a moment, Beck couldn't think properly when he realized that Clu had done more than just use her for target practice. That familiar pain in his chest suddenly came back at full force. Mira suddenly slammed a fist right at a pressure point behind Natasha's neck, causing her to lurch forward from the impact. Dyson smirked in amusement at the sight.

"What have you done to her?"

Natasha threw her legs forward, landing on her feet moments before Mira easily caught up with her, this time kicking her in the thigh. Beck was already aware of what this nutcase had done. Dyson's smirk only grew wider, to the point where Beck wished he could punch it off his face.

"Clu had developed a rather… interesting form of repurposing," he explained in a sneer. "It took xilacycles for him to figure it out. But when he did, he had the perfect opportunity to test it on a User. But of course, things didn't go as plans when that ISO interfered."

This time Beck struck out, anger getting the better of him. Now, he understood why Tron was intent on derezzing this lunatic. Dyson had hurt Mira in more ways than he would ever realize. If she ever recovered, she would never be the same. She had already suffered enough as it was on the Grid, and this attack would only prove what the Users thought of it. He desperately wanted to find a way of freeing her from Dyson's grasp; the sooner they were able to free her, the better off everyone would be.

Beck swung a fist into Dyson's face, colliding with his nose. The general didn't even flinch as he heard something snap. Relentlessly Beck kept throwing a fist at Dyson, ignoring the fact that he was tiring out. The final fist he threw was aimed at the stomach, only to be stopped with a simple flick of the wrist.

"Why don't we end this, shall we?" It didn't take long for Beck to register what that meant. He was about to say something when a sharp pain stabbed at his side. Almost at once black spots clouded his vision, until he was struggling to stand. "As I said before, I'm here to finish what I started."

…

Cold walls surrounded Beck as he finally woke up. The pain he felt from earlier returned, making him wince as he struggled to sit up. He was lying in a small room, a prison from what it looked like. And around him were faces he had become familiar with over the past few cycles.

"Beck, I'm glad to see you're awake," Tron said once Beck registered what was going on.

"What happened?" He was still groggy, and the pounding in the back of his head wasn't helping.

Then his eyes widened as memories of the fight against Dyson returned. That was why his head was pounding. Mira… somehow Dyson had gotten his hands on her.

"If I ever get out of this damned place I'll personally cut his head off!" Beck winced again at the curses Clint was shouting. The cuffs binding his wrists together made it more difficult to get comfortable, though Beck doubted he could ever feel that way here.

"Clint, calm down. At this rate we'll lose our hearing," Natasha muttered with a roll of her eyes.

"How can you stay calm? That son of bitch brainwashed our daughter!" This time Natasha pursed her lips and glared at Clint, eyes cold as ice.

"Of course I can't stay calm, but letting my anger out isn't going to get us anywhere," she snapped.

"Are you two done, yet?" Tron's voice rose above the shouting, making Beck suddenly wish that he had earplugs. The silence that followed was almost deafening. "Beck, do you still have that decoder?"

His only response was a nod, followed by confused looks from Natasha and Clint. The cuffs weren't tight enough that he couldn't wriggle around his wrists. Like the time Tron had caught him in the Outlands, this situation was somewhat similar to that.

The tool was small enough that he kept it on him at all times. And not for the last time he was grateful Bodhi had designed it. Carefully he typed in the code once it was latched onto the cuffs. In nanocycles that cuffs were undone. Once his hands were available he helped free the others.

Beck wasted no time in breaking the door open. Finding the right code for that was easy. It was a good thing Dyson hadn't thought this through.

"Finding Dyson won't be so difficult," Natasha announced as they passed the now empty throne room.

It was likely that Dyson had left long before any of them recovered from being knocked out.

"You put a tracer on him, didn't you?" Once the throbbing went away, Beck was more determined than ever to stop Dyson, and save Mira.

"Obviously," she replied. "He isn't far from here."

The four of them headed down yet another extensive hallway. Beck was getting tired of seeing these endless tunnels. Once this was over he might actually consider staying in the User world for a few cycles. Getting some fresh air would be nice.

Sure enough, Natasha was right about Dyson. Beck's eyes narrowed with outrage when he spotted Mira standing beside the general. If he could he would derezz Dyson right then and there. Unfortunately, it was never that easy.

"I was wondering how long it would take for you to find me," Dyson sneered.

He moved to the side as Clint fired an arrow (how many of those things had he gone through already?), dodging it with ease. Just as he did so Mira sent the arrow flying towards them. Beck jumped out of the way once the arrow exploded, the others doing the same.

"Dyson, enough of this! It's over!" Tron threw his disk at Dyson, who blocked it with his own disk.

Glancing back at Natasha and Clint, Beck noticed that they were holding their own against Mira. He was torn between who he should join. He knew that Tron would more than likely derezz Dyson if he had the chance. And he also knew that if what the general had said about Mira was true, then she would find some way of stopping Natasha and Clint.

"It's not over until I say it is!" Dyson snapped. He twisted around and threw his disk, knocking Tron's out of his hand. "I want to see the looks on your faces when she takes you down with her own hands!"

With a shake of his head, Beck joined in on the fight. Dyson threw out a leg and he flipped back, landing on his hand before throwing his own leg to sweep Dyson off his feet. Dyson cursed under his breath as Beck flipped back again, this time throwing a fist into his chin. Dyson was thrown off guard, reeling back in pain.

Tron suddenly grabbed Dyson by the wrist as he prepared to throw another punch. The program's eyes widened in disbelief as Tron flipped Dyson onto his back, pinning him to the floor. Wariness suddenly washed over Beck. He knew that he was ready for what would happen next. He had been telling himself that this was the right thing. But still something held him back.

"Time to end this." With a disk raised and activated, Tron threw it down.

Beck braced himself for the scream of agony that would follow.

"You derezz me now, and the User you care about so much will never be free."

This time, Tron paused in his attack, only to give Dyson enough time to kick him in the chest, knocking him aside.

 _There are more ways to break repurposing_ , Beck thought. If they had more time, Cutler would have broken free of Clu's grasp. Beck had already seen it happen. The old warrior had been fighting it the whole time. And if what Zena had said back in the Archives was true, then they did have a way of saving Mira from Dyson's hold.

By now, Mira had already taken down Clint. Natasha was still holding her own in battle, flipping back to avoid getting kicked or punched while striking out. Beck saw the chance to join in and stopped Mira from delivering a blow to Natasha in the chest.

"Mira, this isn't you!" he shouted while blocking a swift punch in the face. "The User I know wouldn't let anyone control her, especially someone like him!"

A swing to the thigh caused him to lurch in pain. But this time he wasn't holding back.

"You think you can break the repurposing?" Dyson sneered. "Users are weak and easily manipulated. This just proves my theory!"

This time, a scream of agony _did_ follow his words. Clint had fired an arrow straight at Dyson. The moment it landed electricity surged through him. Beck tried not to flinch as pixels scattered across the floor. Dyson was derezzed. And now all that was left was freeing Mira from whatever repurposing he had done to her.

Mira was a lot faster than Beck remembered. And stronger. Twice already, she had thrown in blows that would have left another painful reminder of the fact that she was repurposed. She was about to strike out again when someone grabbed her by the wrists. Beck had to blink a few times in disbelief when he realized Tron was holding her down. The moment he had hold of her wrists was when he pinned her to the floor. The disk she was holding suddenly fell out of her hands.

"Mira, you're stronger than this," Tron suddenly told her as Natasha pulled Clint back to his feet after he was knocked down by Mira. "Both physically and mentally. Fight it off!"

For a moment, it looked as if his efforts were in vein. Beck's heart twisted with pity when he realized she was still struggling under Tron's firm grip. Whatever hold Dyson had over her was strong. Then, he noticed a change. It wasn't much of a change, but the circuits along her suit began to flicker from a sickening orange to their primary colors. By now, she had stopped struggling.

Beck hadn't missed the wary looks Clint and Natasha were giving Tron, almost as if they were expecting him to hurt her. It felt as if time had slowed down when her struggles finally ended. Tron finally released his grip on her and stood up.

"What just… happened?" Clint asked warily, dropping his weapon after realizing it was over.

"Her system fought the repurposing," Tron explained. "When you derezzed Dyson, whatever hold he had on her was gone."

 _But at what cost_? Beck wondered, his eyes suddenly narrowing at the thought. Mira would never be the same when she recovered from this. He couldn't shake off the feeling that things weren't about to get any better, despite what Tron had tried reassuring him, Natasha and Clint. Whatever the outcome, Beck knew that she would need all of the support she could get once this was over.


	11. Chapter Ten

**Chapter Ten**

The next few cycles were like a blur, for Beck. Between struggling to hide from his coworkers at the garage, to making sure that Mira made a full recovery, he was exhausted. He didn't want to admit that he was terrified, too. To know that Mira would likely regret everything she did only made it that much worse. She would more than likely never forgive herself for what had happened, and that thought alone left his heart twisting with pity. He shook his head at the thought, wishing that things could have been easier.

Natasha and Clint had agreed to keep her here on the Grid. At least, until she woke up from fighting off Dyson's repurposing. Tron had warned them that there might be side effects involved with being repurposed. Side effects that he had been all-too-familiar with. When he asked Zena about said side effects, the Archive Keeper had simply shaken her head and mentioned nothing of it. Even she wasn't aware of how Users would be effected, once they fought off the repurposing.

The worst was hearing what programs said about Mira, when they realized who was behind all the bombings and the attacks on the cities. While Beck hadn't left that room since she was brought in, Paige was always there to keep him informed of what was happening, outside. Sam Flynn had since-than restored most of the damaged data, along with the day and night cycles. But, that didn't help restore the lack of trust programs had in Mira now. He knew that it would take time for them to recover from what had happened throughout the Grid. And some programs were still against Users after the way Clu poisoned their minds. This incident had just been another setback, and one that would eventually resolve itself over time. At least, that was what Beck had been hoping for.

"Hey." Beck couldn't help but flinch at the sound of Mara's voice as the door slid open. He didn't need to look over his shoulder to see that she and Zed had stopped by to visit. Whether they were here to yell at him like everyone else for hiding himself for so long, he didn't know. "We heard about what happened to her… is she going to be okay?"

Mara's uneasy question left Beck turning in surprise. Both she and Zed were standing side-by-side, neither of them sure of what to say about what had happened. He hadn't seen them since the meeting at Argon Square, where his identity had been revealed as the Renegade. At least, not as himself. He'd always been disguised as another program around them, knowing that they would recognize him immediately if he took on his Renegade disguise. Seeing them now made him realize just how much he'd missed their company.

"I don't know," he finally admitted after refusing to make eye contact. "I've never really dealt with anything like this before… She's already been through so much as it is."

Neither Mara nor Zed had anything to say about that. They'd heard enough from Able to know that this User had been through hell.

"Look, we know that what happened wasn't her fault," Zed spoke up for the first time, earning a look of surprise from Beck. "Able told us everything."

"He did?"

Beck couldn't help but shrink back at the thought, finally understanding why everyone had been so upset with his avoidance. He understood their frustration, though. His lack of trust in them had been partly due to what Mira said about programs. He realized with a start that she had been right, all along. The fact that programs were now blaming her for what had happened left him wishing there was a way of convincing them otherwise. Dyson had been the one responsible for all of the attacks; he just used Mira as a way of committing said attacks.

"Beck," Mara whispered his name gently as she pulled out two chairs, and he grabbed one for himself. It felt so surreal, talking to them again without a mask. He glanced over his shoulder warily, wondering what Mira would have said had she been awake at the time. "None of us blame you for anything… you were only doing what was right, all this time. And, when Able told us about her, and… what she's been through, it made me realize just how horrible we've been, to you."

He only stared at Mara in disbelief when he realized what she was insinuating. Cycles of listening to Mara and the others insult him behind his back had done nothing to dampen the need to fight back against the Occupation. At the time, he did it not only because it felt right but, because no one else would. Now, he understood that he fought back to protect his friends, and his coworkers. Nothing would ever change that. He'd do whatever it took to make sure that they were safe, along with the rest of the Grid.

"You were protecting her, all this time," Zed shook his head in grim amusement, all-too-aware that she would have retaliated by saying she didn't need protection. Now though, Beck wasn't sure. His fists clenched at the thought of what Dyson, Clu, and, everyone else, had done to Mira. "She's the one who was with you when we were hanging out, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, she was," he nodded, swallowing back the lump forming in his throat. "She was also the one who gave herself up for us, when Clu was using us as bait."

Both Mara and Zed stared at Beck in disbelief when they realized he was right. Mira had sacrificed so much, all for the sake of programs who would have just turned their backs on her. His fists clenched at the thought. None of this would have happened had he been there for her. Tron kept reminding him that he shouldn't have blamed himself for something they had no control over. But he knew in the back of his mind that this all could have been prevented. That something should have been done to keep it from happening.

"You must really care about her."

Mara's next statement was enough to bring Beck back to reality. He looked up, not missing the look she was giving him.

"I love her," he said without hesitation.

"I knew it!" Zed exclaimed, ignoring the eye-roll from Mara that followed as Beck facepalmed. "What? I mean, it was kind of obvious when we spent the cycle together. And, here, I thought it was Paige you had a crush on."

"Zed," Mara threw Zed a warning look as he tried to hide the sheepish grin that followed, "Look, I know that what happened couldn't have been easy… Beck, you're our friend. If you need anything, please don't be afraid to ask."

"Thank you," he sighed in relief, feeling as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders, "Both of you, for being good friends."

Mara didn't hesitate to pull him in for a hug, with Zed soon doing the same. It was the first time the three of them had had a real, decent conversation. For once, Beck felt more at ease with them than ever. He hoped that Mara was right. Something told him that he would need his friends, now more than ever.

It wasn't long after they left when Mira finally began to stir. Beck felt a spark of hope swell within him, though, the moment didn't last long when her eyes snapped open. Worry clouded his thoughts when he leaned forward, knowing that she wouldn't likely be in the mood to talk for the first few cycles of recovering.

"Hey," was the first thing she whispered.

Beck couldn't hide the look of relief that followed as he took hold of her hand, and squeezed it gently, "Hey."

The moment didn't last when she wrenched her hand away. He frowned after noticing she refused to make eye contact. The last time she had done that was when they first met. He could still remember how she acted upon their first encounter at Able's garage. Though it hadn't been a friendly encounter, they'd slowly but surely begun warming up to one another. And Mira eventually began growing in confidence as a result.

"I did some really shitty things," she muttered crossly.

"Hey, everyone knows that what happened wasn't your fault," he tried reassuring her, though, even he couldn't hide the doubt within his voice. "Mira…"

"Beck, I remember everything I did!" He couldn't stop her from shouting even if he wanted to. Tron had warned him that she wouldn't be the same when she woke up. It would take time for her to recover from what Dyson had done to her. And Beck wasn't even sure if she would ever make a full recovery. "The worst part is, I actually enjoyed hurting all of those programs… and you."

He swallowed nervously after realizing that she was telling the truth. Dyson may have repurposed her to his liking, but that didn't mean she wouldn't remember everything she had done. He suddenly remembered what Tron had warned him when he recovered from his repurposing.

"I'm sorry," he suddenly whispered, taking hold of her hand and gently squeezing it. Mira looked at him in surprise before he went on, "if I had known that this would happen, I would have done everything in my power to stop it."

She didn't say anything after that. Beck wasn't even sure what else he could say to provide comfort. He knew that this would happen, and now he blamed himself even more when she refused to even look at him. The pain and haunted look in her eyes was enough to make him wish he could turn back time and prevent this from happening.

…

Natasha frowned as she studied the case files Fury had laid out before them on a desk. After returning to the Real World, they had immediately reported everything that had happened on the Grid. The only thing they had left out was what had happened to Mira. She was already on thin ice for refusing to join SHIELD, and for refusing to follow orders.

"Dyson was taken down, but it's going to take time for Sam to restore what was lost," Natasha explained as Fury went over every detail of their 'little' adventure.

He didn't seem all that surprised when she had mentioned what Dyson did, or the fact that it was Dyson who had ruined everything for the programs on the Grid. She'd been careful to leave out the more important details revolving around Mira's involvement with Dyson's attack. Considering what she was going through at the moment, they knew the least she deserved was a bit of peace from SHIELD.

"And, what about Mira?" he suddenly asked. "It seems that you're leaving something out. She should have been notified of what was happening if she ran off to the Grid."

"What happened to her is between us," Clint snapped, his tone dangerously low as he glared back.

Fury actually looked a little surprised by his remark. Clint had taken well to the role of a father, having had enough with the way Mira was treated just because she had no other choice. Natasha, on the other hand, was more stoic around Mira. But in this case, she agreed with Clint.

If they explained what had happened to her, SHIELD would see her as a potential threat. Natasha didn't blame her for wanting to stay on the Grid after this. She wasn't ready to face the rest of the world, not after everything that had happened.

"Mira is our responsibility, not SHIELD's," she added cautiously. "If she does anything that is out of line, then it's our fault, not hers."

Fury looked even more surprised with that, and so did Clint. But, unsurprisingly, Clint agreed with her response. Considering the fact that they had personally seen what she went through, it only made sense that they fight for her protection and freedom.

"Fine, but if she does anything else that's out of line, we _will_ apprehend her," Fury snapped after pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

That would only end in disaster. Fury knew full well what Mira was capable of, and her acquaintances on the Grid. He along with the rest of SHIELD would be in for one hell of a fight if they tried taking over.

…

Images of countless programs she had taken down suddenly flashed across her mind. A few of them were on her side, but she knew they were working for the enemy, as was she. It had felt wrong fighting against the programs who were on the run. Yet in the end, she couldn't help but grin triumphantly when they fell at her disk. Those who ran were turned into a pile of pixels.

Then there was the one program who had taught her that all of this was right. That perfection was freedom, and those who were imperfect needed cleansing. She hadn't known at the time what other values there were. All that mattered was following his orders and making sure that the message was clear. Eventually, she had become one of his greatest soldiers. A ruthless warrior who didn't care which program was derezzed by her hands.

She actually enjoyed seeing the terrified looks of her victims' faces when they were brought to justice. It felt good to know that they would soon see the error of their ways. He had promised that they would see the light and join the right side.

A cry escaped from her lungs as she tried to stop these horrible images from taking control. Each time she closed her eyes, it felt like _he_ was in her mind. It felt like he was telling her to fight them, to bring perfection back to the Grid. She slammed her fists against the wall, hoping that the pain would shake him off. She kept slamming her fists until they were covered in bruises, when she suddenly felt someone pull her away with strong arms.

"Mira, hurting yourself isn't going to get you anywhere."

She stopped fighting back after hearing Tron's voice. Her eyes widened in horror when she realized she had punched him several times in the chest before finally stopping. It took her a few nanocycles to realize what had happened until burying her face in his shoulder; she couldn't fight the sobs that followed even if she wanted to.

"It feels like he's still in my head," she choked out, her voice racked with pain. Tron wasn't normally one to provide comfort, but he knew all too well what she had suffered from. "Every time I close my eyes, it feels like he's taking over."

"That's a side effect of repurposing," Tron explained after she had finally calmed down. "You need to keep fighting it, even when it seems hopeless."

Mira wasn't even sure how she could do that. This was the third time she had woken up from a nightmare like that. Three cycles since she had recovered and it still felt as if nothing had changed. Tron had warned her that she would likely suffer from nightmares. He had warned her that repurposing could have strange side effects when a program recovered from it. What he hadn't prepared her for was the pain that would follow.

"I hate myself for what I did," she whispered, staring at the floor shamefully as she recalled everything that had happened.

Her shoulders dropped as she buried her face in her hands, wondering if she would ever recover from what Dyson had done to her. She couldn't shake off the feeling that he was still there. Somehow, she could still hear his voice every now and then in the back of her head. And that thought alone left her panicking as she wondered if he still had some kind of hold over her.

Tron looked taken aback when she had said that. Then he realized that at one time, he had thought the same thing. When Clu had repurposed him, he remembered bits and pieces of all the horrible things Clu made him do. He remembered even fighting Sam Flynn, and the Creator as Rinzler.

"Maybe it would be best if you stayed in the Real World." It took a few nanocycles for Tron's suggestion to sink in, and when it did, Mira stared at him in disbelief. "Staying here will only remind you of everything that has happened," he added.

For a moment, Mira thought that maybe he was just trying to get rid of her. After all, she had been nothing but a burden over the last few cycles. But then she realized that Tron was only looking out for her. As much as she hated to admit it, he might have a good point.

 _Things wouldn't be this way if we had taken care of Dyson sooner_ , she thought bitterly.

But, Tron was right. She needed to focus her attention off of what had happened and move on. That wouldn't happen if she stayed here and was reminded of it all. She hadn't missed the way some programs accused her for the way Argon City and Purgos were destroyed, and she didn't blame them for their actions. Staying here was only causing more chaos than needed.

For now, she was going to return to the Real World. One cycle she would return to the Grid, and she would try to make amends for what she had done. Until that point, she needed a fresh start in life, and the Real World was the perfect place to do that.


	12. Chapter Eleven

**AN: Apologies for the delay in updates; I also wanted to warn everyone that there is mention of self-harm throughout this chapter.**

* * *

 **Chapter Eleven**

She wasn't sure if this would help. Tron had told her that moving on was the best way to recover. There was a price to moving on. It meant leaving the Grid and everyone she had cared about behind. She wasn't even sure if she could do that.

Taking a deep breath, Mira grabbed the rest of her things and decided it was time to face the music sooner or later. The last few cycles had felt like complete hell. She would often wake up with the same recurring nightmares. Tron or Beck had been forced to wake her up every time, and the results would end the same way. She didn't want to put either of them through more stress than they already felt.

 _This is for your own good_. She kept telling herself that as she arrived in the main room where a few programs had already gathered. Mira flinched when she felt their piercing gazes fall on her. None of them were saying anything out loud, but she knew an accusing look when she saw one. Unfortunately, one program did have the nerve to finally speak up.

"Are you planning on destroying another city while we're unprepared?" She didn't bother responding as she pushed her way past the program that had blocked her path. If she said anything or argued against them, it would only confirm their suspicions. "I can't believe that Tron would let her out after everything she's done," the same program sneered.

Once again, Mira chose to ignore him as she made her way towards the communication center. This was where the Digitizer would have sent her had she used it properly. But for some reason, the last time she had used it, the Digitizer sent her somewhere in the Outlands. She had a feeling that Dyson was responsible for that as well. It was too much of a coincidence that the Digitizer would malfunction while he was waiting out there with his repurposed soldiers.

"So that's it, you're giving up?" Mira flinched at the accusing question Beck asked. She wasn't surprised to find him waiting there; he was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed in frustration.

"Beck, you and I both know that no matter how hard we try to forget, it just isn't possible," she replied, her voice quiet as she stared down at the floor. "I've honestly tried, so hard, to flush him out. But Tron's right – the only way I can truly forget about him is by leaving."

"This isn't about what they've been saying, is it?"

Again, she flinched at what the program had said before she stepped inside. He had every right to feel suspicious with Tron. He shouldn't have allowed her out of her room, not when the cities were still being restored by Sam. Worst still was the fact that few programs would never trust her again, after all was said and done.

"They aren't going to trust me," she said, her voice barely a whisper, but Beck heard it loud and clear. "And I'm not ready to forgive myself for what I did. It's time I went home…"

She wasn't given a chance to finish her sentence when Beck suddenly gave her a hug, which eventually turned to a kiss. Her body gave in as she welcomed the warm embrace of his arms around her. It felt as if cycles had passed since she last felt his warm embrace.

"I won't be gone for too long," she promised when they broke apart.

"Are you sure?" Mira let out a sigh before nodding in response.

"Positive," she reassured him. "Neither SHIELD, nor the Real World, isn't going to keep me away forever, that much I'm certain of."

The moment she had everything together was when she approached the main console and typed in a few codes. The Digitizer on the Grid soon whirred to life. Mira looked at Beck one last time, hoping that this really wouldn't be the last time she saw him. Time seemed to slow down when a red light flashed before her eyes.

Everything became a blur, but in a split nanocycle was when she found herself standing in the middle of her apartment. Mira looked around in surprise when she realized that everything pretty much looked the way she had left it. Even the furniture (there was really only a sofa and a kitchen-counter) looked as if it had been recently dusted.

Mira wondered for a moment where Rinzler might be when she heard a knock on the door. Her body reacted faster than her mind as she reached for her light sword, ready to strike down whoever was intruding until recognizing who stood in the hallway. Mira's eyes widened in surprise when she realized it was Steve waiting for her to answer the door, and squirming in his arms was a very unhappy Rinzler.

She opened the door, and Rinzler managed to free himself from Steve's firm grip and jump onto her shoulder. The kitten purred once he had returned to her side.

"Good morning to you too," Steve said after noticing she hadn't said anything.

They had become neighbors under the conditions Natasha and Clint gave her when she decided to keep an apartment in the Real World. She wasn't happy with the idea at first. Steve was more like an overprotective uncle than anything else; someone who thought she wasn't capable of taking care of herself.

"Sorry, it's been a rough mylacycle," she murmured, then winced at the term she had used.

"Nat told me what happened on the Grid," Steve explained, and all at once, memories of everything that had happened came rushing back. Steve's eyes widened when her face paled, and Rinzler jumped off her shoulder before finding a hiding place after realizing something was wrong. "None of it was your fault," he tried reassuring her just like Beck and Tron had.

Mira brushed him off with a shrug, struggling to regain her composure. "Look, I know that all of this was my fault," she snapped, her voice suddenly angrier than she had expected. "That's why I left. I don't want to put Beck or Tron through anything like that again." She closed the door in front of him before he could say anything else.

"Good talk!" Mira rolled her eyes as she walked over to the sofa. The microcycle she thought about it, she let herself fall onto the sofa and felt a wave of exhaustion creep over. This was going to be a long cycle.

…

Beck tossed a third simulation soldier over his shoulder for what felt like the umpteenth time that cycle. He had been working out in the simulation room for the last few pectrocycles. When Mira had left, he didn't think things could get any worse. But things indeed had when a program started ranting about how Users shouldn't even be allowed on the Grid. He was also the same program who had blamed Mira for everything that happened over the last few cycles.

"Beck." He stopped at the sound of Paige's voice. Turning around, he flinched at the sight of her leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. "Are you okay? You've been at this training simulation for the past pectrocycle," she said in a slightly accusing tone. He looked down at the floor, and suddenly, Paige understood what was going on. "So, she decided to leave." It wasn't a question, but the statement made him flinch as another cold wave of reality crashed over him.

"She couldn't live with what she did to everyone," he said bitterly, punching a fist into the nearest wall. He had never felt so utterly defeated. Even when Tron had been repurposed and turned against them… somehow, this hurt even more. "I just wish I knew what to do."

Paige bit the bottom of her lip and walked over; she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. As a medic, it was her sheer instinct to help programs in need. But, a broken heart was never really something she had been trained for.

"What exactly did Tron say?" she asked warily.

"He said it was best she leaves," he replied, sounding angrier than bitter this time. "Leaving would help her forget what happened, but… what if she never comes back? What if she plans on forgetting about us?"

Now she understood what was going on. Beck was so afraid of losing Mira a third time. He had already lost her twice, and the second time had to be the hardest. Paige didn't know what to say as she imagined what he must be going through. She couldn't bring herself to think what Mira was going through at the moment. She had suffered the worst of everyone here.

"Well, if she really cares about you, then she'll return when she's ready," she decided to say after giving her response some thought. Besides, Beck wasn't the only one who needed comfort at this moment. She had no doubt that Mira herself would need all of the comfort and support of her friends that she could get. "The only thing you can do now is wait it out."

…

Steve was really worried about Mira when she didn't leave her apartment for two days straight. He should have known something was wrong the moment she arrived. Natasha had warned him that she might seem… off, but he realized that something far worse was happening.

"Natasha, what aren't you telling me?" he asked after she had stopped by. Natasha glanced in the direction of Mira's apartment before letting out a sigh.

"Look, Steve, this is something that stays between us, and only us," she replied, her voice barely a whisper. Steve rose an eyebrow and nodded in agreement. His eyes widened in utter shock when she told him what had happened on the Grid, including what had happened to Mira. "Tron warned us that there would be side effects after she fought off repurposing."

"So, someone should be keeping an eye on her," Steve concluded after realizing just how serious this really was. He had never met Tron personally, but he heard high praises about the security program from even Tony, and that was saying something.

Natasha simply nodded and pulled out a key from her pocket. When she opened the door, they were shocked to find Mira's apartment a complete mess. What was usually a neat and tidy floor had now been covered with scattered paper. A few holes had been punched through the walls, and it didn't take a genius to know that she was responsible for those dents. Natasha immediately sent Clint a text to get here ASAP.

"This is worse than I expected," she sighed after glancing down at the bloodstains coating the wall.

"I knew you said it would be bad, but…" Steve didn't get the chance to finish when Clint arrived, cutting him off with a curse under his breath when he saw all the damage.

"See, this is why we should have stayed," he muttered with a roll of his eyes.

"Clint, you know as well as I do that we needed to inform Fury of what happened," Natasha retorted. Her eyes fell upon the kitchen floor where a certain black figure was laying.

Rinzler was pawing at something, mewling in concern until noticing the new arrivals. Natasha's eyes narrowed when she realized what that something was. Clint was the first to approach the kitchen, and his face fell at the sight before him.

"Well, this just got even worse," Clint said after cursing once again. Steve didn't recognize the name of whoever Clint was cursing, but whoever they were, they would be sorry that this had ever happened.

Mira had lost consciousness and was sprawled out on the kitchen floor. To any normal eye, it might have looked as if she had just passed out from exhaustion. But upon closer inspection, Steve could tell that something was wrong. Several cuts and bruises could be seen across her arms and knuckles from where she had punched out the walls.

"We need to get her to the hospital, fast," Steve suggested after noticing just how much blood she had lost.

It only took them a split second to decide that Steve was right. Neither Natasha or Clint argued at the fact that she needed more than just medical help. These injuries were self-induced. Whatever nightmares she was suffering from had driven her to this point.

Steve couldn't even imagine what she was going through. Mira was so different from anyone else he had ever met. She was broken, in more ways than one. He felt guilty for thinking of that, but he knew that it was true.

…

Once she was situated in the nearest ICU, Clint and Natasha stood outside the room and discussed what to do with her. She wasn't going back to the Grid. Not anytime soon, at least. So their second best option was to watch her themselves.

"Clint, if I had time I would watch her myself," Natasha sighed as she looked in the direction of the room where Mira was being held.

"I wouldn't worry too much," Clint reassured her with a knowing look. "I've got a place in mind." Natasha rose an eyebrow as she realized where he was getting at. "I've already given her a heads up; she knows," he added after seeing the look of surprise in her eyes.

"And if she tries to run?"

"Already thought of that too. The place is rigged – anyone over five feet gets caught red-handed," he explained with a shrug. With so many eyes watching her, Mira wouldn't have much of a chance to escape either. Staying on the farm might be good for her, especially after everything she had been through. "I've already discussed this with Fury. There's no way in hell I'm keeping her in a SHIELD facility. They'd eat her alive at that place."

Natasha grimaced, and all too-willingly agreed with him on that notion. Despite the fact that SHIELD took on threats that the public wasn't even aware of, they were horrible when it came to treating people new to the agency. She had no doubt they would try worming their way into Mira's already fragile mind, and make things worse. The farm was their best option. Clint just hoped that Mira saw it that way, in the end.


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

There was nothing more depressing than being stuck in the ICU for three days straight. Especially when one had to explain why the victim in question recovered so quickly from their injuries. Clint crossed his arms irritably when more than a few nurses had gotten a little too curious for comfort. He'd been keeping a careful eye on Mira, making sure that she received proper medical treatment before making the ultimate decision that would likely change things, between them.

Spending time on the farm might be good, for her. Clint had been more than happy to keep her away from the Grid. After the crap she went through, he wouldn't blame her for not wanting to go back. But, of course, she would go back. He knew where she got her determination and stubbornness from. He only just realized how much of a dangerous combination he and Natasha made when it came to having a kid, let alone one who was raised on the Grid.

After making a few calls with his wife, and making sure that everyone was up to date on what was happening with Mira, Clint had gathered whatever necessities were needed during her stay at the farm. The kids were going to ask questions. Questions that even he never felt fully prepared to answer.

At least Laura was more than understanding about the situation. She had been angry with him, at first. But, when she heard of what Mira had been through, and what measures Natasha had gone through to protect her from the Red Room and other agencies, she'd grown to accept that some things simply couldn't be changed.

Once Mira had been moved from the intensive care unit, Clint already had a quinjet prepped for a flight to the farm. The flight itself hadn't taken long. It was landing and making sure he didn't wake her that took forever.

She was still unconscious due to the sedatives by the time he arrived. Being small and thin had its advantages, at times. Clint was able to carry her across the yard and to the house before Laura opened the door for him, eyes widening in disbelief when she saw Mira for the first time in person.

She'd seen videos and pictures that he'd sent to her, but, nothing could have prepared her for seeing the girl in question. Several old bruises and cuts covered her arms. Most of them had already healed, thanks to whatever Clu's 'experiments' did to her.

However, Clint was fully prepared for whatever hell Mira would put herself through the next few weeks. He may have never dealt with anyone like her, before, but, that didn't mean he was willing to try. She was his responsibility, after all.

"I know you said it was bad, but… I didn't think it was this bad," she gasped out once Clint managed to reach the spare bedroom.

Clint let out a heavy sigh as he carefully moved her so that the sheets could cover her. She was his responsibility, now. And, he planned on taking that task seriously.

"She's in a worst state than I was after the whole mind-control thing," he shook his head when Laura reached him, placing a hand on his shoulder. She wasn't even sure what to say, about that. "The worst part is, she was only just beginning to open up to us."

"None of this was your fault, Clint," she pointed out after noticing the look written across his face. Like it or not, he blamed himself for what had happened to her. He was an Avenger, for God's sake! And, her father. The least he could have done was protect her from all of this. "Look, no one could have predicted any of this would happen. You managed to stop the bad guy, and, you saved the day. I would consider that a win."

"Then, why does it feel like a loss?" he scoffed, crossing his arms with another shake of his head.

He knew thinking about what could have been wasn't going to help matters. He was just thankful that they could get Mira out of the hospital, and, into a place where she might feel a little safer. Even if she would feel like this was a prison. All they could do now, was sit and wait for her to recover.

…

Violent images swept past her vision as she tried to regain her senses. Voices echoed in the back of her mind, reminding her of everything she had done. It felt as if she was trapped. Walls surrounded her, dark, cold and black. Each time she tried looking for an escape, none came.

She finally let out a cry, covering her ears to block out the accusations that rang through the air. The cloud that seemed to hang overhead only made it feel that much worse. It wasn't until she was violently shaken that she blinked.

"Mira!"

Hearing her name in the distance, Mira blinked a few times, her vision clouding over before it finally began to clear. Mira's eyes widened in surprise when she found herself sitting in an unfamiliar room. As she tried taking everything in at once, she noticed that Clint was staring at her in alarm.

"Where am I?" she demanded.

She winced at the hoarseness of her voice, realizing she must have been out of it for a few cycles.

"You're at a safehouse," he explained once he was sure that she wouldn't bolt.

Mira stared at him in confusion, wondering how she got here, in the first place. Then, her face faltered as memories came rushing back.

She had been a mess, for the last few cycles. Even after leaving the Grid, nothing could have prepared her for the nightmares that would follow. The voices that echoed in the back of her mind were always there, lurking in the darkness. Mira's fists clenched with fear; she knew that those voices had been telling her to kill. To follow Clu's command and his idea of 'perfection'.

It was only through hurting herself that those voices seemed to fade away. The pain had felt good, at the time. She hadn't stopped until seeing black spots clouding her vision. After that, she couldn't remember much else of what happened.

"How did I end up here?" she asked after rubbing her face, trying to hide the fact that she was exhausted, mentally.

"I brought you here," Clint told her after standing up. He looked at her seriously as Mira refused to meet his piercing gaze. "Come on, you can have breakfast in the kitchen."

For a moment, Mira didn't move as he left, gesturing for her to follow. She glanced around, noticing the pictures that lined the walls, and other knickknacks. The room felt strangely homey. Yet, Mira felt that strong sense of unease.

Not for the first time, she realized that unease was because it felt as if _he_ was still there. It felt as if Dyson was still in the back of her mind, telling her what to do. She could see his smirk of satisfaction when she obeyed his command, and, had felt the same satisfaction upon performing said task.

A shiver of rage swept through her at the thought. How many innocent lives had she taken, all because she couldn't fight back the repurposing in the first place? She realized with a start that the programs that blamed her for what had happened were right. She truly was nothing more than a coward, running away from her problems.

With a shaky breath, Mira finally stood up for the first time and winced. Everything ached. It felt as if she'd been run over by a light cycle, multiple times.

Once she caught her bearings, she found a change of clothing in one of the drawers of the closet in the back of the room. Mira quickly changed into a fresh outfit, trying to ignore the dull pain that seemed ever-present.

She carefully made her way out of the room, blinking in surprise when she noticed that this 'safehouse' was actually a large looking farmhouse. She half-expected to find herself in a SHIELD facility, after the last fiasco. To her relief, though, Clint must have thought ahead and picked a location he knew she would feel safer in.

Mira blinked in surprise when she spotted Clint sitting at a kitchen table with two kids and an older woman. The three of them were focused entirely on their meal. At least, until hearing the door to her room shut close. She flinched when the little girl seemed to take notice of her sudden arrival.

"Aunt Nat!" the girl cried in delight.

She was frozen on the spot as the little girl jumped out of the chair and made a beeline towards her. It wasn't until Clint grabbed hold of the girl that she stopped in her tracks, staring at him in confusion.

"No, that's not Auntie Nat," the woman corrected the little girl, who looked thoroughly confused in that moment, as she looked between Clint and Mira, "That's our guest."

Awkward silence followed as the woman took the little girl from Clint. Mira hadn't missed the look she threw her. She suddenly felt more like an outsider, here, than she had on the Grid and the Real World. Truth be told, she didn't really know where she belonged, at this point.

Clint quickly led the way outside, where she soon found herself standing on a wraparound front porch. Mira looked around warily, noticing that the land around here was relatively undeveloped and seemed to go on, forever.

"Those people are your… family?" she guessed, frowning as she stared off into the distance, leaning against the railing.

"And yours, technically," Clint replied without missing a beat. He too leaned against the railing, looking less than happy with having to reveal the fact that he _did_ have a family outside of work. "They'd be your half-siblings."

Her face betrayed the faintest hints of anger and confusion. While she wasn't familiar with how Users worked when it came to families, she was fully aware that Natasha and Clint were her biological parents. That alone left her feeling confused as to why he would be with a different woman, and, have other kids.

"Does she know?" she asked, regarding the fact that she too was his daughter.

She had a feeling that wouldn't sit well with someone who obviously must have cared about him, and their family. She hadn't bothered asking what Natasha would have thought of all of this. More than likely, Natasha was the first to find out about his 'family'. Besides, Natasha would have also been the first to agree that this was the best option they had, for now.

"She was the first to find out," he replied with a shrug before looking at her sternly. She flinched under his piercing gaze, suddenly wishing a hole would open up and swallow her. "Look, I know this isn't going to be easy for you, but, it's the only option we could think of to get you away from SHIELD."

A shudder ran through Mira at the thought of facing SHIELD. After everything that had happened, she wasn't in any hurry to explain herself to Fury. The Director of SHIELD would want to know what had happened, on the Grid. He would deem her as a threat. He would deem the Grid as a threat. She couldn't do that to the programs who had already suffered from so much.

"So, your idea of a vacation is to keep me in a place where there's no civilization?" she asked, earning a frown from Clint as he knew where this was headed.

"There's a town about two miles north of here," he retorted, not sounding the least bit happy at the prospect, "Even I can't keep the kids away from school or a normal life."

Mira swallowed hard at the mention of a 'normal' life. She knew that her life was anything _but_ normal. Having grown up mostly on the Grid, and, suffering from the cruel upbringing it provided, she knew that she would never trust Users the way she should have.

"So, this is your idea of me living a 'normal' life?" she guessed, glancing at Clint self-consciously when he refused to look at her.

"Something along those lines."

The curtness in his tone was enough of a reminder that things had gone horribly wrong. She let out a sigh of frustration and pushed her way past him, back into the house. The kids had been relatively distracted with the prospect of food. The woman who had been sitting at the table looked over her shoulder in surprise when they both returned, looking less than happy with their situation.

"Did I miss something?" the woman asked, looking at Clint when Mira swept past them, ignoring the curious looks the children threw her.

Clint could try and pass on a normal life with his family. He could do whatever it took to keep them safe. But, that would not change the past. The voices in her head kept getting worse. Mira finally slammed the door shut behind her and threw herself onto the bed, burying her face into the pillow to let out another scream.

This was going to be a long vacation.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

The next few cycles were hell, for Mira. While Clint had told her that this would be like a vacation, she knew it was anything but. She managed to break out a few times, but, not before getting caught by nets that snared when she tried crossing the property line. The worst was seeing the look Clint would give her when he found her the next morning. He would just give her this 'dead' stare, and, not bother cutting her loose until he dragged her back to the porch.

Now, it felt as if everyone was expecting her to make some kind of mistake. Mira spent a few cycles hidden in her room, wrapping her arms around her legs as she tried to keep the voices in her head from overwhelming her. Nothing could have prepared her for the nightmares that would follow. She was so afraid of closing her eyes. She was afraid of waking up again, only to find herself working for Dyson, again.

Eventually, she was forced to leave the room when she started to notice how low on energy she was. The woman, who called herself Laura, had mentioned that she could help herself to whatever was in the kitchen. While she didn't feel like facing anyone, Mira knew that a confrontation was inevitable.

Once she reached the living room, Mira noticed that the place looked empty. She glanced out the door, noticing that the kids were outside in the yard. Clint was easily keeping up with them, tossing what appeared to be a ball to the little boy as the girl tried doing a cartwheel. Laura sat on the porch, watching the peaceful scene from a safe distance.

 _He makes living a normal life look easy_ , she thought bitterly.

"Hey." Mira froze at the sound of Laura's voice. The older woman finally seemed to notice her arrival, and offered a warm smile. "If there's anything you want to eat, feel free to ask."

For a moment, Mira didn't know how to answer. She stared at Laura blankly, having little to no idea what to even consider as 'food'. After spending so long on the Grid, and surviving on nothing more than energy, she just got used to calling it that.

"I uh… I'll have whatever is available," she said, trying to keep the wariness out of her voice.

Laura only gave a nod at that before checking on Clint and the children. After making sure they were distracted, she went over to the kitchen and started pulling things out of the cabinets. Mira watched curiously from a distance. She hadn't ever had the need to cook anything. Even while staying at Avenger's Tower, meals were already prepared for everyone staying, at the time.

"I know this is anything but easy, for you," Laura started once she had something on what Mira guessed was the stove, "Clint told me what happened… no one should ever go through something like that."

Mira refused to make eye contact with the older woman as she stared at the floor. A combination of guilt and shame crawled through her as she thought of the countless lives she'd taken. She was responsible for so much. And, at the time, it had felt good. That was what terrified her, the most. She hadn't realized until than how cynical she was, when under the influence of someone else.

"All I ever seem to do is hurt people, lately," she muttered.

"Sweetie, what happened back there wasn't your fault," Laura tried reassuring her. "There are some things in this world that none of us have any control over."

She winced at the mention of 'control'. Laura didn't seem to notice as she finished preparing whatever she pulled from the cabinets and fridge. The silence that followed was incredibly awkward, especially as Mira felt Laura's gaze boring through her when she handed her the plate.

Real World food was something that Mira could never get used to. Most of her life was spent living on the Grid, where she had gotten so used to surviving on energy, alone. It took a few seconds for her finish her meal, before Clint and the children returned. Mira stiffened at the sight of the children, especially when she noticed the piercing look Clint was giving her.

"Well, look who finally decided to grace us with her presence," he grumbled, clearly annoyed with her lack of cooperation.

"Clint," Laura threw him a warning look.

"Where'd your scars come from?"

Mira felt her blood run cold when the little boy asked that. Both Clint and Laura had stiffened instinctively the microcycle her scars were mentioned.

Faster than she thought possible, she got back to her feet and lost her appetite. Low on energy or not, she didn't plan on sticking around when all they would do was judge her based on her scars. She bolted before anyone could say anything else.

Once she was alone, Mira closed the door shut behind her and threw herself onto the bed, burying her face into the pillow.

She knew people saw her differently because of those scars. She knew they would only pity her because of what had happened. In truth, Mira was fully aware that she didn't deserve their pity. Not after everything she'd done. She couldn't forgive herself.

…

She'd lost track of how many cycles it had been since she left the room. Laura would still stop in every now and then, leaving her a plate full of food. The older woman didn't bother insisting that she join them for dinner. She seemed to understand that Mira wasn't in any hurry to face the rest of the family.

It wasn't until hearing the door open that Mira finally turned to see Clint standing at the doorway. He didn't look any happier with the situation than she was, at the moment. Both of them were forced to make choices neither of them were happy with. Mira wondered if he was beginning to regret letting her stay on the farm while she 'recovered'.

"Let's go for a walk," he suggested, earning a look of surprise from Mira.

She was ready to argue when she noticed the fact that he was giving her an opportunity. Giving a faint nod of agreement, Mira climbed out of the bed and followed him into the living room. Relief swept through her when she noticed the kids were currently distracted with whatever Laura had set up on the table.

From what she gathered, Users spent a lot of time with families playing 'board games', as Steve called them, or, 'cards'. She could still remember when Beck had played a round a chess with Steve, and, lost miserably against the Super Soldier. The distraction seemed to be working, as Laura kept the kids from running over and asking more questions regarding her lack of conversation with the family.

Awkward silence followed when they left the living room and walked out onto the porch. Mira's mind began to wander back to the countless nightmares that had woken her up in the middle of the night. Between a lack of sleep and everything else, she knew she was suffering, in more ways than one. Clint seemed to sense that, himself. Maybe, that was why he'd taken it a little easier on her.

"You here to ream me out for not spending enough time with the family?" she asked, the quiet bitterness of her voice enough to make her wince.

She hadn't meant for that to come out so harshly. Clint wasn't even surprised, though. He kept quiet as they trekked forward, until reaching what looked like a wooden fence that surrounded open land. Mira looked around warily, noticing for the first time how much land this property must have had.

"No." Mira glanced at Clint self-consciously as he leaned against the fence, gesturing for her to do the same. "Look, I've seen a lot of shit over my years of working for both SHIELD and the Circus of Crime. I know what you're going through, Mira."

"That doesn't justify my actions, or the lives I took," she snapped, realizing this was the first time Clint had mentioned the Circus of Crime.

She remembered Natasha mentioning something about it, once. But, it had been nothing more than a comment regarding their training routine on the Grid. Mira had never thought about it, until Clint brought it up again.

"No, it doesn't," he agreed with her, for once.

"The Circus of Crime… Natasha mentioned it, once," she murmured, her voice softer now.

"It's not exactly something I like talking about." Mira hadn't missed the trace of bitterness in his voice. "When my brother and I were just kids, we were orphans. We ran away and joined the circus, hoping to find a better life. Turned out, it wasn't exactly what either of us expected. My brother got out, but I went on working for the Circus of Crime as Hawkeye, trained under Trickshot."

"Hence the codename," Mira guessed, suddenly understanding where that name had come from. Clint gave a nod, before realization swept through her, "You have a brother?"

" _Had_ ," he corrected her. Mira swallowed hard when she decided it was better not to ask. "All I'm saying is, we've all got problems of our own. I've learned to deal with my own demons."

Mira chewed the bottom of her lip, feeling another stab of guilt when she thought of the countless lives she'd taken. Between that and the destruction she caused throughout the Grid, she didn't know what was worse. It went against everything she believed in, and had fought for.

"Do you know what it's like to be remade?" she asked, her voice bitter as she struggled to keep herself from lashing out. "It feels like he's in my head… and I can't shake him off."

"Yeah, I do know." Clint's response made her look at him in surprise. "And it feels like hell, knowing that someone has control over the mind, and you can't do anything to fight it. Mira, I can't do anything to fix whatever it was that bastard did to you." Mira flinched at the mention of what had happened on the Grid a few mylacycles ago. He put a hand on her shoulder before saying something that really surprised her, "Only you can fight him off. And judging by what Tron taught you, you're more than capable of doing that."

Mira looked down at the ground as she wondered if Clint was right. At one point, admitting that Tron was more than a good teacher would have probably killed him. But hearing Clint say that made her realize that he must have known Tron was right to teach her everything she had learned.

"How would you suggest I flush him out entirely?" she finally asked after giving what he said some thought.

"Think of anything but what happened," Clint replied, looking at her thoughtfully. "Focus on the people you care about."

She nodded and took his advice, closing her eyes and focusing her attention on everyone she cared about. Despite her lack of trust towards most Users and programs, she still cared deeply for them. The most important programs in her life included Beck and Tron. Focusing on them gave her more strength than she realized, and eventually, mental images of the Avengers came to mind. The more she thought about them, the stronger her compassion to protect them and keep them safe became.

 _I would die for them_ , she vowed. And in that moment, she realized that there were no voices in her head. No one telling her what to do or how to act. Her eyes opened, and she found herself staring at Clint in amazement. It felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She suddenly wrapped her arms around him in a hug, realizing just how much hurt and pain she had suffered from over the last few xilacycles. She hardly noticed that anyone else was watching, or the fact that tears stung the edge of her vision. She was finally _free_.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Alright, is there anything else you'd like to order?" the waitress asked as she eyed the unusual family.

She'd already written down most of the orders that were spewed out in a matter of nanocycles. Once that task was finished, the waitress informed them that the food would be out within fifteen minutes or so.

When Clint had suggested that they go out for the evening, Mira hadn't realized he meant out for dinner. This was technically the first time Mira had eaten at a restaurant. She wasn't sure what to expect out of it, other than the fact that it was crowded, loud, and full of other Users busy eating their food. The atmosphere itself wasn't bad. Music played quietly in the background, but, it was loud enough that Mira could understand what was playing.

"Okay, what's the occasion?" Laura asked curiously, "We never go out unless it's someone's birthday."

Mira rose an eyebrow at that. Sometimes, she thought Clint took his role as the 'overprotective' father a little too seriously. It seemed she wasn't the only one who thought that. Though, considering his line of work, she couldn't necessarily blame him for wanting to keep his family safe.

She often wondered how he even began this life with Laura. The woman seemed perfectly content with their lives. Yet, it was obvious she too worried about Clint throwing his weight around with the team.

She chewed the bottom of her lip at the thought. She was becoming more aware of the fact that Clint cared more for his family than he ever let on. What surprised her the most was how willing Laura had been to let her stay. Considering she had likely thrown a wedge between them during their discovery, she couldn't blame Laura for feeling a bit wary around her. Instead, his wife had welcomed her with open arms.

"I figured it would be good for the family to get out," Clint replied without missing a beat.

For once, Mira couldn't argue with that logic. She couldn't help but think of everything that had happened, over the last few cycles. Even Clint had noticed her subtle change in attitude, since their conversation. She wouldn't admit out loud that she _did_ feel better. The nightmares had finally stopped haunting her, and for the first time in cycles, she was able to get a full night sleep without waking up. It truly was like a breath of fresh air to get out and have a 'normal' day, even if it didn't necessarily feel normal.

The kids, who she later learned were named Emily and James, had been focused on the place mats and crayons that were given to them. She was thankful they hadn't asked anymore questions about her scars. While they were curious about where the scars came from, and, where _she_ came from, they had been wise enough to avoid the uncomfortable subjects.

"You seem happy," Laura remarked after noticing that Mira hadn't said a thing as she fumbled around with the straw in her water. "What changed?"

"I finally have something to feel happy about," she murmured without looking up.

She hadn't missed the exchange Laura and Clint made. With Clint sitting beside Mira, she knew the odds of escaping were slim. So, she settled for whatever meals were being brought out to them. With a whole hilocycle having gone by, Mira was anxious to get back to the Grid and see how things were progressing. Though, the odds of going back with Clint in charge were also slim.

Besides, it wasn't as if she would be welcomed, there. The last time she was on the Grid was when it had nearly been destroyed, by her. Mira couldn't shake off the sense of dread that came sweeping back each time she thought about it. She thought of how close she had come to becoming Dyson's favorite, to becoming dangerously close to becoming the thing she hated more than anything else.

Clint had already informed her that Sam was rewriting the damaged files. Most of the glitches and problems had been fixed. But, that didn't solve the problem regarding everyone's memories of the most recent attacks. Mira knew they would blame her for what had happened. Hell, they already did blame her. So, it only made sense to stay until things were truly resolved.

About the only positive outcome of the situation at hand was that they'd learned Clu had contingency plans set out for his untimely failure. She had no doubt other programs who had been close followers would try and seek out those plans. Tron had already made plans of his own to fight back against said programs, and keep history from repeating itself.

"I know these last few weeks haven't exactly been the easiest, for you," Laura went on as the food finally arrived, "But, I am glad that Clint decided to bring you here."

Again, Mira said nothing as she focused on the food in front of her. She knew the real reason why Clint dragged her all the way to the farm. It wasn't just for her own protection. He wanted to keep her from going back. He wanted to make sure that SHIELD didn't get their hands on her, and, understandably so.

"I miss it," she finally sighed after taking a bite out of her food, wincing at the texture of it.

Even after spending a few hilocycles in the Real World, she just couldn't get used to the strangeness of food. She didn't admit out loud that she missed Beck. Of course, she missed him. More than anything, she wanted to go back and make sure _he_ was okay. After all, they hadn't necessarily parted ways on the best terms.

"Well, the good news is, most of it's been finished," Clint reluctantly sighed. Mira looked at him in disbelief, while Laura looked equally confused. She hadn't known about the Grid. At least, not to the extent that he and the majority of the team knew. About the only one who rarely stopped by, these days, was Thor. "Look, I may or may not have received word from the boss that Flynn's managed to restore the worst damage."

"So, you're saying I could've gone back, all this time?" she asked, eyes narrowing slightly.

"You could've, if you were in any condition to go back," the archer snorted in response, ignoring the warning look Laura threw him.

Mira leaned back against her seat, suddenly aware of the tension between them. She knew he was reluctant to let her go back. After everything that had happened, she couldn't entirely blame him. But, the Grid was her home. He couldn't take that away from her.

"You and I both know that I don't belong in the Real World," she muttered under her breath, "I haven't seen Beck, Tron, or anyone else for a hilocycle."

"What's a hilocycle?" Emily asked when she finally noticed that something wasn't right.

"It's a time reference," Clint answered for her before looking back at Mira, who by now crossed her arms and glared at him defiantly, "Nat's stopping by later tomorrow. We can talk about moving forward from there."

 _Please_ , she nearly rolled her eyes at the prospect, _you just want to keep me locked up for as long as you can_.

The thought suddenly left her feeling resentful towards him. As grateful as she was for the help he provided in flushing out Dyson, Mira was angry that she hadn't been able to leave without his permission. Father or not, she wanted to go home. Now, more than ever.

…

Morning had arrived far too quickly for Mira. She thought back to their conversation at the diner, last night.

Her fists clenched as she remembered what Clint had said. If the Grid was fully functional, and, she had finally figured out a way to fight off Dyson's repurposing, once and for all, she wanted to go back. At this point, she didn't care what Clint told her.

She let out a sigh of frustration and got changed. After spending a hilocycle with Users, Mira was beginning to get used to the daily routine that seemed to surround this farm. Clint and Laura were usually the first to get up. The kids often would get up later in the day, since they didn't have school to worry about. She herself was usually the first to get up, having gotten used to waking up earlier than everyone else.

Working on the Grid taught Mira to get up early and prepare for the rest of the cycle. Because of the intense training routine Tron set up for everyone under his command, it had become a habit. She realized with a start that things were different, in the Real World.

 _I'll never get used to this kind of life_ , she thought sadly.

It left her feeling guilty as she wondered what her life would have been like had she grown up in the Real World. The foster home she stayed at would have likely kicked her out at a certain age. She had no doubt anyone wanted to adopt her, especially given her heritage.

Mira shook her head at the thought and climbed out of the bed, changing into clothes quickly. Clint had already warned her that Natasha was stopping by for a visit. That alone left Mira wondering if her mother had somehow found a way to convince Clint that staying here wouldn't do her any good. Hell, anything was better than being stuck in a place she obviously didn't belong.

Relief swept through Mira when she spotted a familiar figure standing in the living room after leaving her own room. She wasn't expecting Natasha to arrive so soon. Seeing her now, dressed in civilian clothes, made the whole thing that much stranger when Mira saw Clint's kids surrounding her like they were old friends.

"Things have been going smoothly enough," the archer muttered when Mira reached them.

She hadn't missed the fact that Laura was watching them from a distance. The woman seemed indifferent with the fact that Natasha and Clint were her parents by birth. She knew Clint had explained the situation to Laura, and though she seemed accepting of what had happened, that didn't make her feel any better.

"Seems that way," Natasha quipped after turning.

Mira couldn't help but freeze upon seeing that piercing gaze. She knew she had a lot of explaining to do. After managing to fight off Dyson once and for all, she realized that a lot needed to be said and done. She still blamed herself for everything that happened. Everything could have been avoided, had she been prepared for the worst outcome.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, ignoring the looks Clint's kids gave her as Laura stood up and shooed them out of the living room. Luckily, Laura always seemed to know when a private conversation was needed between them. This was one of those moments. "I'm so sorry."

She finally broke down, feeling the weight of everything that happened crash down on her in that moment. It wasn't until feeling a pair of arms wrap around her that she broke down into a sob. A combination of guilt, exhaustion and everything in between swept through her. She couldn't stop blaming herself for what happened on the Grid, not when she knew she was responsible for it.

"Mira, no one could have predicted any of this would happen," Natasha reminded her, her voice strangely soothing. "What happened back there wasn't your fault. It was ours for not being more prepared for something like this."

A shiver ran through Mira at those words. No. She didn't want to believe it was anyone else's fault. That same voice that came rushing back kept reminding her that she could have done something to stop it. That she should have done something about it.

"Is everyone okay?" she asked after finally calming down enough that she didn't need her mother's support.

She felt guilty enough for putting Clint through all of this. He'd done everything he could to make her feel comfortable, and even now, she gave him a hard time. She knew it was purely out of stubbornness. Yet, she wanted nothing more than to go back to the Grid and make things right, again.

"The Grid is in better shape than it was," Natasha reassured her. Mira hadn't missed the subtle exchange she made with Clint. Or, the fact that he was now scowling with his arms crossed. "Flynn managed to restore all of the files, and put a failsafe on the Digitizer in case something like that happens, again."

She let out a sigh of relief when she realized what that meant. The Digitizer had malfunctioned, which was what had led to that disastrous outcome in the first place. If they did manage to fix everything, then that meant the Grid really was back to normal.

"So, that means I can finally go back?" she asked, knowing that when it came to making firm decisions, Natasha was usually the one with the final word.

As much as Clint hated to admit it, he was not going to argue with the Black Widow. She was one User Mira wouldn't want to piss off on any occasion.

"There shouldn't even be an answer to that," the archer scoffed knowingly, ignoring the glare Mira threw him.

"Yes, you can go back," Natasha replied, shooting Clint a warning look. "In fact, you _should_ go back."

That was enough to catch Mira by surprise. She had left a lot of questions unanswered, such as how Beck had been holding up since the programs from Able's garage discovered his identity. But, Mira had a feeling she would be finding out, soon enough. She shook her head at the thought, feeling more than relieved that she would finally get to go back home.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

" _Feels like we're on the edge right now, I wish that I could say I'm proud I'm sorry that I let you down, Let you down All these voices in my head get loud, I wish that I could shut them out I'm sorry that I let you down..._ " - Let You Down, NF

* * *

It was a relief to be back in her old apartment when Mira returned with Natasha and Clint just hours after discussing matters with them. The first thing she noticed was that everything had been cleaned up. The mess she left behind earlier had been removed, like it never happened. Even the holes in the walls where she'd punched through were covered up.

A lump formed in the back of her throat as she recalled that moment. She felt so bitter and angry towards Dyson, Clu, and everyone else who caused pain in her life. The self harm she inflicted upon herself was enough to take her mind off of what had happened, on the Grid. While it was only temporary, the pain from her injuries had given her enough encouragement to keep going, until everything spiraled out of control.

Shame crawled through Mira, as she recalled the satisfaction that followed. It suddenly made her wonder what would have happened, had Natasha not found her in time. A small part of her already knew that she would have likely not survived.

Mira tried pushing the uneasy memories away when she caught sight of Rinzler. The little kitten had leaped out of his hiding place and jumped into her open arms, purring as she rubbed between his ears. It did feel good to see him, again. Rinzler had kept her company while she was on her own on the Grid. The little kitten had provided what little comfort she could find while alone.

"He missed you." Mira blinked in surprise at the sound of Steve's voice. The Super Soldier stood not far from her doorway, arms crossed as he looked between Mira, Natasha and Clint as they reached them. "SHIELD stopped by and cleaned the place up, after you were gone."

For a moment, Mira was tempted to say something that would more than likely receive vengeful glares from Natasha and Clint. Luckily, she kept her mouth shut and let Rinzler drop back down to the floor, where he jumped onto the chair and curled up.

"Thank you, for looking after him," she sighed, glancing over her shoulder warily. "I'm sorry, for the way I acted. I know it was out of line, and—"

"You don't need to apologize for anything," Steve assured her, shaking his head as if he'd expected that kind of apology. Mira just looked at Steve as he uncrossed his arms and looked at her curiously. While they may not have talked much, even when she was spending time in the Tower, she'd always known that Steve Rogers was a good person. She just couldn't bring herself to trust him, entirely. Not with everything that had happened. "Look, what happened to you, I wouldn't wish upon anyone. I know none of it was your fault."

"That's what everyone keeps trying to tell me," she muttered, glaring down at the floor as her fists clenched. "But, everything I did was of my own actions… Repurposed or not, I should have stopped myself from hurting all of those programs."

Steve rose an eyebrow at the bitterness in her voice. She managed to mask her emotions well enough around Clint and Natasha. Enough for them to believe that everything was fine. But, she knew better. Her heart still felt the sting of what she had done. That wasn't going to change, anytime soon.

"Are you planning on going back?" Steve asked in surprise, trying to hide the uneasy feeling swelling within him when the two agents in question reached them.

"The Grid's stabilized now, thanks to Flynn," Natasha explained, "Everything that was damaged has been fixed, along with a few upgrades to the Digitizer."

Mira flinched at the mention of everything that was 'damaged', something that had not gone by unnoticed by Clint. The archer didn't look happy with the idea of her going back. But, he knew by now how stubborn she was. Hell, she knew where she got her stubbornness from, even if he didn't want to admit it.

"You're welcome to join us, if that's what you're implying," Clint finally spoke up, ignoring the scathing look Mira threw him.

That was enough to catch Steve's attention. He'd never been to the Grid, before. Tony had paid a visit on more than one occasion, and even Bruce had stopped by to see what it looked like after the Digitizer was fully operational. The Super Soldier was the only one out of the team aside from Thor who hadn't stopped by.

"That doesn't sound like a bad idea," he quipped after giving it some thought. "I've never been on the Grid; it would be good to see what it looks like."

She only muttered something under her breath as they all got ready for the Digitizer to activate. Since Flynn managed to get it fixed, Mira could only hope that things on the Grid would go back to normal. She was thankful that he'd worked so quickly to repair the damage that was done. While they hadn't talked much since the incident revolving around Dyson, Flynn had blamed himself for not taking more caution with the device in question.

Once the Digitizer was activated, it felt as if time slowed down.

It had been at least a hilocycle since Mira last stepped foot on the Grid. She knew that time would heal the old wounds that lingered. But, it left her worrying that programs wouldn't forget what she had done. She couldn't shake off the uneasy feeling that followed when they finally rezzed in the headquarters where operations were usually held.

The moment the red lights disappeared from Mira's vision was when she found herself facing a greeting committee. Well, if she counted Tron and Paige as a greeting committee. Seeing the former Commander and Tron standing there was just another reminder of the things she had done, and, what was left undone. She knew Natasha would have likely sent a warning message to Flynn, who in turn likely sent a message to Tron himself.

"It's good to see you again, Mira," Tron was the first to speak up, crossing his arms as he eyed Natasha and Clint seriously.

Then again, Tron was always serious, as far as Mira was concerned. The tension between Tron and her birth parents would likely never fade away. Mira knew from experience how overprotective Clint was, and how distant Natasha was.

"Likewise," she returned the gesture, feeling apprehensive for the first time in cycles. "How is everyone?"

"Everyone's doing well… mostly," Paige replied, this time. "Beck's been so antsy about going back and checking on you; Tron's had to pull the reins to stop him," she explained once they split apart from the group.

Mira nearly rolled her eyes at that, knowing Beck well enough to understand why he was acting that way. Guilt suddenly swept through her as she remembered the way she had left him. She knew that leaving had been the coward's way out. But, something told her that things wouldn't have changed, had she taken that jump.

"How is he?" she couldn't help but ask.

Paige narrowed her eyes, pausing for a moment in her stride, "He's… been better. Tron finally ordered him to get some rest."

That was enough for Mira to stare at Paige in disbelief. She knew that Beck could be stubborn. Heck, they were equally as stubborn as Tron could be, when it came to their own health and safety. If anything happened to him because of her decision to leave, she would never forgive herself.

It didn't take long for them to finally reach a room where programs normally recovered from serious injuries. Mira's heart nearly skipped a beat when she saw Beck for the first time in what felt like hilocycles. To her surprise, and annoyance, he looked to be in a worst state than Paige had described.

"What the hell was he doing with himself?" she demanded, ignoring the incredulous look Paige threw her.

Even the former Commander couldn't keep him from doing stupid things.

"Depleting himself of energy, and working himself to the point of exhaustion," Paige rolled her eyes, "You know how he is. He blamed himself for what happened."

Once again, guilt gnawed at her stomach as Mira realized the reason behind his behavior. She hated the fact that it had come to this. Knowing that they'd already been through so much, Mira had a feeling that things wouldn't get any better, anytime soon.

It wasn't until Beck began to stir that Mira crossed her arms and glared. She knew that it was partly her own fault any of this happened at all. But, Beck shouldn't have blamed himself for it. This had mostly been her fault, for not preparing for any of it.

"Hey." Beck frowned in confusion when he realized that he wasn't alone.

"Hey." Mira chewed the bottom of her lip when her eyes met his. "You're a bitbrain, you know that?"

"Yeah, I know," Beck nearly rolled his eyes, wincing when he tried sitting up. "How long have you been here?"

"A few microcycles, give or take," she shrugged before reaching him. Guilt swept through her once more when she thought of how leaving the Grid had been so easy. Before, she would have given Natasha or Clint hell for forcing her to leave. Now, things were different as memories of what had happened haunted her. "It took a bit of convincing on Clint's part," she added, hoping to lighten the mood as Beck finally stood up.

Though, if she was being honest, Clint wouldn't have even agreed to letting her go back if Natasha hadn't convinced him. Mira nearly scoffed at that. She was grateful to have someone she could call a father looking out for her, but, there were times when his overprotective nature became too much.

"So, does this mean you're back for good?" Beck asked, the hopefulness in his voice enough for her heart to sink.

 _I've been nothing but a coward_ , she thought, knowing full-well that all of this had been her fault. Leaving had been her decision, and her decision alone. She shook her head at the thought. After the Dyson incident, she didn't plan on letting something like that happen to her, or the grid, again.

"Yeah, I am," she replied with a nod. She didn't miss the way Beck's eyes lit up when he closed the distance between them. "Beck, I'm sorry for leaving… I had to—"

He suddenly stopped her by capturing her lips with his. Mira closed her eyes as the familiar sensation of his lips pressed against hers came rushing back. Any thought of arguing dissipated from that one kiss.

"Don't you dare blame yourself for something that wasn't your fault, Mira," he gently scolded her.

Mira couldn't hide the small smile that followed. She buried her face into his shoulder, feeling more than relieved to be back in familiar territory. Whatever happened from then on, at least they would have each other. And, nothing was going to change that.

…

"I know that look, Clint." Natasha's voice snapped the archer back to reality. He looked at her oddly before shaking his head doubtfully. After seeing what Mira had gone through, it was obvious she had more room to recover. She was masking her emotions, something that irked him more than he wanted to admit out loud. "You don't think it's right for her to stay."

"Of course I don't," he scoffed and crossed his arms defiantly. He knew better than to argue with her. Yet, every instinct was screaming at him to make sure that Mira never went through that again. He'd experienced firsthand what it was like to have someone else in his head. It wasn't something one got over within a week, and she'd been away for little more than a month and a half. "No kid should ever have to go through what she did."

Natasha let out a sigh of frustration as she reached him. She carefully placed a hand on his shoulder, already aware of where this was headed.

"Clint, you and I both know that it's wrong to keep her away from this life," she reminded him with a knowing look.

Clint only grumbled something inaudible under his breath. He hated knowing that Natasha was right. As much as he wanted to make a valid argument and find some excuse to keep her away, he knew it was pointless. Mira would only find some way of returning to the Grid, or she would go crazy being stuck in their world. Either solution didn't make him feel happy.

"I also know how damn stubborn she is," he muttered crossly. He was anything but happy with the idea of Mira staying on the Grid after that awful experience. "And that she's hiding the fact that she hasn't fully recovered from it."

Neither of them were willing to admit that it could take years of therapy for Mira to fully recover. Between Dyson and everything else, it was a wonder she trusted anyone at all. Natasha gave a small shake of her head as a fresh wave of guilt swept over her.

None of this would have happened in the first place if she had never given Mira up for adoption. Truthfully, she'd always blamed herself for everything that happened. She knew Mira was better off in the orphanage – there was no telling what would have happened if the Red Room had gotten its hands on her. As far as she was concerned, the past always had a way of catching up with her.

"She has Tron and Beck to look after her," Natasha pointed out after giving it some thought.

As much as she hated to admit it, both programs were more than capable of looking after Mira. Tron was tough on both, and rightfully so.

Clint's brows furrowed in frustration when he realized she made a valid point. He knew at that point he just wanted her to spend more time in the Real World. _Their_ world. Though it may have seemed selfish, he wanted to spend more time with her. After all, they'd only just begun getting to know each other before she chose to stay on the Grid.

"Sometimes I hate it when you're right," he grumbled after finally letting his shoulders drop in defeat.

"I know you do," she replied with a smug look.

…

Mira rubbed her wrists self-consciously as she stood beside Beck for what felt like pectrocycles. In reality, it had only been a few microcycles since she and the others arrived on the Grid. She could hear Natasha and Clint arguing over what was best for her. The thought of knowing that her future was at stake sent a shiver of unease through her.

 _I'm fully capable of making my own decisions_ , she tried reminding them silently.

While not every decision had been the best, at least she managed to survive on her own. Natasha wasn't opposed to the idea of letting her stay on the Grid. Unlike Clint, she seemed to understand that the Grid was more like home than the Real World ever would be. Yet, Mira could understand why Clint wanted her to stay.

He thought the Real World was safer. That she would be safer under their constant surveillance. Mira knew that none of this would have happened had she been more vigilant. Her heart wrenched at the thought of how this could have been avoided if she'd taken extra precautions.

"Programs need to be reminded that they're in safe hands," Tron pointed out, cutting through her thoughts. Mira glanced at Tron warily when she caught the scowl Clint threw him. "Users weren't responsible for what happened… Dyson was."

"Even if that is the case, how do we know they're going to trust me?" Mira finally spoke up. She heard her voice crack a little at the thought that they would never trust her again. After everything that happened, she couldn't blame them for not wanting to trust her. After all, she'd proven to them just how cynical Users could be. "I'm not exactly in any position to tell them they can trust me."

"You won't have to," Beck tried reassuring her, though even she heard the doubt in his voice.

"Most programs already know that you weren't responsible for what happened." Both Mira and Beck looked at Tron in surprise when he said that. "You'll just need to give them a reason that they can trust you."

For the first time since returning to the Grid, Mira felt a sense of hope as she realized what he meant by that. There were programs who believed that she wasn't a threat. And that meant more to her than she would ever admit out loud. She gave a resolute nod and turned to look at Natasha and Clint, already aware of what would happen next.

"I know you don't think the Grid is the best solution for me," she started after meeting Clint's piercing gaze.

"Yeah, I do think that," he crossed his arms and looked back with equal annoyance. "But, I also realize that this _has_ pretty much become your home."

He added the last bit with as much reluctance as he could muster. If it wasn't for the fact that Natasha had likely convinced him that this was the best idea, she would have been annoyed with that. Yet, Mira also understood why he wanted her to spend more time in the Real World.

"Thank you," she finally murmured when their eyes met. "For everything you've done."

She was at least being honest. Clint had done more for her than she could ever admit out loud. Not only did he introduce her to his family, but he also taught her a way to flush out Dyson entirely. She could never forget that.

Before she could protest, Clint suddenly pulled her into a tight hug, ignoring everyone else in the room for just a moment. For a moment, Mira wasn't sure how to react. Eventually, she returned the gesture when she realized that it would be more than a few cycles until they saw each other again. Hopefully under better circumstances.

"We'll be keeping in touch," Natasha warned her when they pulled apart.

It looked as if there was more she wanted to say. Mira couldn't help but meet her gaze questioningly.

"I wouldn't expect anything less," she replied with a nod of understanding.

With those parting words, both Natasha and Clint activated the Digitizer and disappeared within nanocycles. The moment they were gone was when Mira let out a heavy sigh and glanced at Beck self-consciously.

"Something tells me we're not gonna have a few cycles off after this," he remarked after rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

Mira only smirked in agreement at that. They were going to be busy trying to repair the damage caused by Dyson. But at least they had each other. And she finally realized just how much that meant to her.

* * *

 **AN: So this is the end of the series... I was thinking of going into CATWS, but after seeing Infinity Wars Part I, I don't think that's gonna happen. I do plan on keeping all of my original works up so people can compare them and see if these stories are any better (which I like to believe they are, all things considered). I know that this ending feels a little rushed, and that it's taken forever for me to come up with it. But, I wasn't sure where to leave it off. I'm thinking of possibly writing one-shots revolving around the series, and if that happens, I'll likely post something on my profile to let everyone know. Thanks for keeping up with my updates, and these stories.**


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